Dead at Birth’: MP Okyere Baafi Blasts Flawed 24-Hour Economy Rollout

The government’s flagship 24-hour economy initiative is collapsing before it begins, says Michael Okyere Baafi, MP for New Juaben South, who described the rollout as “dead at birth” and blamed poor planning and zero industry engagement.

Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, Mr. Baafi argued the scheme was announced as a headline-grabbing promise rather than a workable programme. “They sold a vision of three-shift operations that would create jobs and keep services running all day and night, but the mechanics to deliver that vision were never put in place,” he said.

Baafi singled out the absence of private-sector buy-in. He insisted a genuine 24-hour economy must be driven by businesses that are ready and willing to expand operations, while government acts as facilitator, offering targeted incentives, tax breaks, and negotiated operational plans. “Government should have identified firms capable of scaling, negotiated support packages, and fixed logistics like transport, security and utilities. None of that happened,” he said.

He also warned of practical obstacles that have been ignored:
• No incentive framework to offset higher operational costs for businesses.
• Lack of public transport solutions to move night-shift workers safely.
• Failure to consult unions, industry groups and utility providers on round-the-clock service delivery.

Without these building blocks, Baafi said, the initiative risks becoming a political slogan rather than an economic transformation. “If there’s no policy clarity, no stakeholder engagement and no financial modelling, the 24-hour economy will stay a slogan,” he added.

The MP urged the government to pause the current rollout and engage in a structured plan that includes private-sector memoranda of understanding, phased pilots in receptive industries (healthcare, logistics, hospitality), and measurable targets tied to incentives. He said the state should focus on creating the conditions that make extended hours profitable and sustainable for businesses, not force a top-down mandate.

Baafi’s comments add to growing public debate over whether the government’s ambitious economic programmes are being executed with adequate technical planning. He concluded with a call for realism: “Good ideas need good planning. Otherwise, they die at birth.”