Former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has accused the Mahama administration of repackaging its 24-Hour Economy programme as the New Economy, describing the initiative as a rebranding of what he considers a failed policy.
He questioned why projects and programmes previously announced under the 24-Hour Economy had been incorporated into the New Economy agenda if the original initiative was still on course.
His comments follow the presentation of the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy by Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson to Parliament on Thursday, November 12.
Addressing journalists on Friday, November 13, Dr Amin Adam said the transfer of the projects suggested that the government had abandoned its earlier programme.
“Projects and programmes on the 24-hour economy have been lifted into the New Economy. And this is why we were very confident that the 24-hour economy has failed. They have repackaged the 24-hour economy as the new economy. If it hasn’t failed, what is the reason for the government repackaging it and renaming it as the New Economy?” he asked.
He challenged the government to be transparent with Ghanaians about the status of the 24-Hour Economy programme.
“So the government must admit and tell the Ghanaian people the truth. Yes, I failed with my 24-hour economy. Now I want to rename it,” he said.
Dr Amin Adam also questioned the government’s ability to finance the New Economy programme, which is estimated to require US$10 billion over four years.
He argued that the administration had previously struggled to deliver the 24-Hour Economy programme, which he said was expected to cost US$4 billion.
“If this government could not deliver the 24-hour economy, which was costing $4 billion, how do they expect Ghanaians to believe them that they can fund a renamed 24-hour economy with $10 billion, $5 billion in two years? How are they going to do that?” he queried.
The former Finance Minister further argued that some projects under the New Economy agenda were not entirely new, citing the oil palm development programme, which he said had featured in the 2026 Budget.
He noted that the previous budget, presented in November 2025, outlined plans to cultivate 100,000 hectares of oil palm and create 250,000 jobs. He said the same targets had now been presented under the New Economy programme.
“The same project, the same 100 hectares, the same 250,000 jobs, which was put in the 2026 budget, presented in November 2025, now appears as a new project under the New Economy,” he said.
Dr Amin Adam questioned why the government was presenting the oil palm initiative as a new intervention when, according to him, the land required for its implementation had yet to be acquired.
He called on the government to clarify the status of the projects and explain how the proposed US$10 billion programme would be financed.
The New Economy programme, expected to begin in 2027 as Ghana marks 70 years of independence, seeks to reduce the country’s dependence on raw commodity exports, strengthen domestic production and break recurring boom-and-bust economic cycles.
Dr Forson has described the initiative as an integrated production system that will channel investment into critical sectors while consolidating macroeconomic stability.
