On February 19, 2026, the signing of the 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill was presented to the Ghanaian public as a visionary leap toward industrialization. To the casual observer, the idea of a “Ghana that never sleeps” is an attractive one. However, for those of us at the Institute for Liberty and Economic Education (ILEE) who study the long-term effects of state expansion, this new Authority is a classic example of “bureaucratic mission creep.” By creating a new government office to “manage” the economy, the state is once again choosing the heavy hand of central planning over the invisible hand of the free market.
The primary justification for this new Authority is the need for “coordination.” Proponents argue that a centralized secretariat is required to align tax incentives, security, and power supply. But in economic reality, “coordination” is often a polite word for more red tape. Ghana already possesses a Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), and the Ministry of Employment. Adding a new “Authority” with its own Chief Executive, board of directors, and administrative staff does not streamline the economy; it simply adds a new gatekeeper who must be satisfied before a business can innovate.
Experience has consistently shown that when governments create specialized authorities to deliver market outcomes, they often cause regulatory duplication. Instead of a shop owner in Kumasi deciding to stay open late because customers want to buy goods, they must now navigate the “registration protocols” of a new office in Accra to prove they are “24/7 Ready.” This shifts the focus of the entrepreneur from serving the customer to pleasing the bureaucrat.
The most dangerous premise of this bill is that a 24-hour economy can be “authority-led” rather than “demand-led.” Economic activity is a response to price signals. If a factory in Tema sees a profit in running a third shift, it will do so—provided it has affordable power and safe streets.
By empowering an Authority to “grant” incentives and “identify” sectors, the government is effectively picking winners and losers. Our research at ILEE indicates that targeted tax rebates managed by a central body inevitably favor large, politically connected firms that have the legal teams to navigate the application process. Meanwhile, the small-scale manufacturer—the real engine of Ghanaian growth—is left out, yet still pays the taxes required to fund the Authority’s GH₵100 million budget allocation.
We cannot ignore the fiscal cost of this new bureaucracy. The 2026 Budget aims for a primary surplus to stabilize our national debt. Every new government office requires vehicles, office space, “stakeholder engagement” budgets, and salaries. This is capital that is “crowded out” of the private sector.
If the government spent that same GH₵100 million on public goods—such as fixing broken streetlights, increasing police night patrols, or lowering the general corporate tax rate—every business would benefit. Instead, we are spending it on a secretariat. A 24-hour economy requires a “system readiness” that comes from infrastructure, not from a new group of civil servants.
A true 24-hour economy is an organic phenomenon. It requires:
- Lowering the general tax burden for all companies, rather than offering complex rebates that require “Authority” approval.
- Labor law flexibility that allows for shift work without the threat of predatory regulatory interference.
- Basic Security that ensures a worker is as safe at midnight as they are at noon.
Instead of an Authority, what Ghana needs is radical deregulation. We need to remove the barriers that make it expensive to hire more people. We need to stop the creation of “specialized agencies” that historically become nests for political patronage.
We need a rethink of this bureaucratic approach. Economic transformation is not found in the signature of a bill or the hiring of more civil servants; it is found in the freedom of the Ghanaian entrepreneur to innovate without permission.
If we want a 24-hour economy, let us fix the electricity grid and reform the tax code for everyone. Let us spend money on police patrols, not on Board of Director fees. The “24-Hour Economy Authority” is a solution looking for a problem, and in the process, it creates the very bureaucracy that will eventually slow our progress down. To truly “reset” the economy, we must shrink the state and grow the citizens.
ILEE POLICY BRIEFS 23RD – 27TH FEBRUARY 2026
The editorial team at the Institute for Liberty & Economic Education (ILEE) is comprised of dedicated professionals committed to promoting individual liberty, free markets, and private property. With expertise in public policy research and analysis, our team crafts insightful editorials that advance the principles of economic freedom and limited government, informing and engaging readers on critical issues affecting society.
