President John Dramani Mahama has announced a $10 billion New Economy Programme to expand production and create jobs across Ghana over the next four years. He unveiled the plan at the groundbreaking for the Afienya Industrial Park in Greater Accra on Thursday, October 15, 2026.
Half of the money is earmarked for agriculture and agro-processing, while the rest will support industry and the infrastructure that links producers to markets. President Mahama explained that the programme aims to raise production, cut dependence on imports and expand exports.
“The New Economy Programme will be a $10 billion programme over four years. And it means that we are going to invest $2 billion every year for four years into the most productive sectors of the economy that will create jobs.”
President John Dramani Mahama
President Mahama tied the programme to the progress his government has made in steadying the economy. He observed that “Stable currency and lower inflation is attracting more interest in the Ghanaian economy,” and he pledged that, with public support, the government will stabilise it further.
Stability alone will not feed families, however. The next task, he argued, is to “turn that progress into greater production, into higher incomes and to decent and sustainable jobs.”
Sectors Chosen for Job Creation
President Mahama gave a wider list of beneficiary sectors during a later tour of factories in the area. They include agriculture and irrigation, agro-processing, enclaves, pharmaceutical enclaves, renewable energy and tourism, among others.
He disclosed that the government will place its money in “sectors that are rich with job creation,” and he named young people as the main beneficiaries. The President also promised a quicker pace once the programme takes off. He told the gathering that “next year things are going to get even faster” because the government will launch it then.
The Minister for Finance will present the full framework to Parliament in the 2027 budget, President Mahama disclosed. He placed the delivery of results firmly in the hands of private enterprise.
“Its success will depend on enterprises that invest, employ our people and turn Ghanaian resources into competitive products.”
President John Dramani Mahama
He added that industrial parks such as Afienya will provide an important foundation for that effort, because they bring together the land, infrastructure and services that businesses need to start production and grow.
Park Infrastructure Draws on the Programme
President Mahama disclosed that part of the financing for infrastructure at the Afienya Industrial Park will come from the New Economy Programme. He revealed that he had just discussed the infrastructure needs with the Chief Executive of the Ghana Free Zones Authority.
After viewing the park’s design, he explained that officials will start work on roads, water and electricity. The park covers 1,238 acres and is planned to host more than 120 enterprises. The Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry will lead the development of the priority sectors in collaboration with the Free Zones Authority and private investors.
After the ceremony, President Mahama toured an industrial complex he last visited a year ago and found far more factories in operation. He pointed to textile, battery, truck manufacturing and steel fabrication plants, and he mentioned a factory producing barges for transport on the Volta Lake. He credited the activity to the 24 hour economy policy.
“It is beginning to show the job creation aspect of it,” he stated, and young workers now rotate through morning, afternoon and evening shifts. He noted the excitement of the young people in yellow helmets who have secured jobs.
Rapid expansion has strained the power supply, he conceded. The local substation has become too small for the number of factories, but the Minister of Energy and Green Transition has assured him that the transformer will be replaced within three weeks so that factories can run full shifts.
Exports Come Next
President Mahama noted that the textile factories he visited export all of their output, and he promised to widen their reach. The government will help them obtain licences under the African Continental Free Trade Area so that they can supply West Africa and the wider continent rather than only Ghana.
He congratulated the entrepreneurs he met and assured them that Ghana will create the environment in which they can use the country as a hub. President Mahama described the day as fruitful and then broke the ground for the Afienya Industrial Park.
He prayed that the project would bring meaningful work to Ghanaians, strengthen exports and give confidence to everyone who invests in the country.
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