President John Dramani Mahama has cautioned contractors engaged in the construction of the government’s 24-Hour Markets against relying on mobilisation payments before commencing work.
He said contractors awarded the projects must have the financial capacity to begin construction with their own resources, stressing that government would only make payments after contractors had demonstrated measurable progress.
President Mahama made the remarks during an inspection of an ongoing 24-Hour Market project at Nadowli-Kaleo in the Upper West Region as part of his two-day Resetting Ghana Tour.
According to him, while some contractors have commenced work and are progressing well, others have been unable to start because they lack the financial capacity to mobilise to site.
He said the government deliberately structured the payment arrangement to ensure that contractors had the capacity to execute the projects rather than depend on upfront mobilisation.
“Once a contractor reaches 15 per cent completion, payment is made, and the work continues until the project is finished,” President Mahama explained.
He said funds were available for the projects and therefore there was no justification for contractors to fail to advance their works to the 15 per cent completion threshold.
President Mahama criticised the practice under which some contractors previously took mobilisation payments and allegedly diverted the funds to other uses, including purchasing expensive vehicles instead of executing the projects.
He said the current arrangement was intended to ensure value for money and prevent a recurrence of such practices.
The President commended the contractor working on the Nadowli-Kaleo market, describing the firm as serious and expressing satisfaction with the progress of work.
He urged other contractors undertaking similar 24-Hour Market projects across the country to emulate the pace and quality of work being delivered at Nadowli.
President Mahama said the government is constructing 24-Hour Markets in all 261 constituencies as part of efforts to stimulate local economic activity and create reliable spaces for trading.
He said the projects were particularly important to farmers who need dependable outlets to sell their produce.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭