Evaluating the impact of a 24-hour economy on Ghana's economic landscape: A computable general equilibrium approach

Abstract

The National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ghana's leading opposition political party, has unveiled an ambitious ‘24-hour economy’ policy proposal ahead of the country's forthcoming general elections in 2024. The policy aims to revitalise the nation's economic landscape by fostering round-the-clock operations in key sectors. This paper employs a dynamic Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model framework, underpinned by the 2015 Ghana Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) and the 2021 Ghana Population and Housing Census (PHC) data, to evaluate the potential impact of the policy on Ghana's economy.Results indicate that under the proposed ‘24-hour economy’ policy, Ghana's real GDP growth (not to be confused with GDP growth rate) in ten years would be 31.71 % higher than it would have been under a ‘business-as-usual’ scenario in the same timeframe. This indicates substantial augmentations in economic output within the Ghanaian economy under a ‘24-hour economy’ setting. Further, the policy would generate more than 3 million jobs within five years of its implementation, with manufacturing, agriculture, wholesale and retail trade, services, construction and transport sectors experiencing substantial employment gains.The policy's transformative effects are driven by its ability to stimulate capital investment and capital formation, boost productivity and increase household incomes.The paper concludes that the NDC's proposed ‘24-hour economy’ policy holds substantial potential for transformative economic growth in Ghana. However, there are potential challenges associated with the implementation of the policy, which then necessitates a holistic approach to policy formulation, focusing on inclusive growth and sustainable development strategies.