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AMA arrests over 21 traders for selling on open drains at Agbogbloshie Market
The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has arrested twenty-one (21) traders for displaying and selling their wares on open drains at the Agbogbloshie Market in violation of the city’s sanitation and public health regulations.
The operation, which took place on Tuesday, was led by Public Health Officers from the Assembly as part of ongoing efforts to sustain cleanliness in the Agbogbloshie enclave following the National Sanitation Day exercise held a fortnight ago and the reintroduction of the Clean Ghana Campaign Train, a sustained citywide initiative to enforce hygiene and environmental health standards.
Prior to the enforcement exercise, the Mayor of Accra, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, had visited the market and announced a two-week intensive clean-up and desilting operation to restore hygiene and free the drains ahead of stricter enforcement.
Speaking after the exercise, the Metro Director of Public Health, Madam Florence Kuukyi, described Agbogbloshie Market as one of the largest and most critical food supply centres in Accra, noting that nearly 80 percent of food vendors and handlers across the city source their goods from the market.
She expressed concern that some traders had taken advantage of the market’s importance to engage in practices contrary to public health and sanitation regulations adding that the Assembly’s bye-laws strictly prohibit trading on streets and along drains.
“What we continue to observe is worrying, people have abandoned their stalls and locked their shops, only to display goods along the streets, this behaviour causes traffic congestion, creates unsanitary conditions, and exposes food items to contamination,” she said.
The Public Health Director cautioned that dust from moving vehicles often carries microorganisms that settle on exposed food items, leading to potential foodborne diseases and decried the habit of some traders who dispose of waste indiscriminately or push refuse into drains, saying such acts contribute to flooding when the rains come.
“Sanitation is a shared responsibility. It cannot be achieved by one person or one institution alone,” she stressed.
She announced that the Clean Ghana Campaign Train would continue across all sub-metros in the metropolis, describing it as an unannounced and continuous exercise until full compliance with sanitation laws is achieved.
“You will never know when the campaign train will arrive, so it’s best to always keep your surroundings clean and operate according to the rules,” she warned.
She emphasised that traders have been duly informed and sensitized by the Information Service Department (ISD) of the Assembly over the past weeks on this exercise and the essence of moving off the drains and streets.
The Director also revealed that future enforcement would extend to those who patronise roadside traders.
“If there are no buyers on the streets, the sellers will have no choice but to return to their stalls,” he said, explaining that this measure would help restore order and protect public health.
She reminded traders that the Assembly’s enforcement actions were not meant to punish but to protect lives, noting that illegal trading along roads and drains could result in accidents and injuries.
Madam Kuukyi announced that all food items confiscated during the operation would not be returned to offenders but donated to children’s homes within the city and called on traders as well as residents to support the Assembly’s efforts to make Accra a cleaner, safer and healthier city for everyone.
A palm nut seller at the market recounted how she once accidentally stepped on a tuber yam, which led to confrontation and applauded the ongoing exercise by the Assembly urging officials to keep coming around to ensure people moved back from the roads and drains.
She later expressed gratitude for the way the team was handling its duties and commended the team for their approach, adding that their regular presence would greatly improve orderliness at the market.
By: Gilbert Ankrah
The Global Network of Export-Import Banks and Development Finance Institutions (G-NEXID) successfully held its sixth (6th) Exchange Programme, hosted by the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) Bank in Accra from March 22 to 23 March.
The event brought together member institutions, partner organisations and Ghanaian public entities to advance dialogue on South-South trade, investment and development finance, while also creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing and institutional cooperation.
Organised as a capacity-building and networking platform, the 2026 edition of the G-NEXID Exchange focused on GEXIM’s experience in developing innovative solutions to promote intra-African and extra-African trade.
It also highlighted trade and investment opportunities in Ghana, particularly in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and broader national development initiatives.
The Exchange Programme forms part of G-NEXID’s mandate to foster cooperation among export-import banks and development finance institutions in support of South-South trade and investment.
This 6th edition follows earlier successful programmes hosted by India Exim Bank (2016), BNDES (2017), Indonesia Eximbank (2018), Afreximbank (2019) and Saudi EXIM Bank (2025).
On the first day, participants were presented with G-NEXID institutional information and received an update on the Network’s 2026 work programme.
There were a series of substantive presentations, including an overview of the Ghanaian economy by the Ministry of Finance, with particular attention to debt-related challenges; a presentation by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), on investment opportunities in the country; and institutional presentations by GEXIM and Development Bank Ghana (DBG) on their respective mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Discussions during the sessions underscored strong interest in sector-focused webinars and business dialogues, particularly in agribusiness value chains such as poultry and rice.
Participants also emphasized the importance of continued information exchange and the sharing of best practices, especially in the area of guarantees.
The second day opened with a presentation on the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme, a national economic transformation strategy launched by President John Dramani Mahama in July 2025.
The initiative aims to enhance economic productivity through continuous industrial activity, accelerated export development and strategic import substitution.
As the programme is expected to mobilise both private and development capital, it presents concrete opportunities for G-NEXID members in areas such as co-financing, guarantees, trade finance and technical cooperation.
The programme also featured institutional presentations by guest organisations, namely the African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund (FAGACE) and the West African Development Bank (BOAD), which shared their mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Following these exchanges, the G-NEXID Secretariat held bilateral discussions with both institutions as part of the Network’s ongoing membership drive.
Participants further benefited from a presentation by the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), as well as a showcase of GEXIM’s key pipeline projects.
On the margins of the Exchange Programme, G-NEXID members also held their 20th Annual General Assembly Meeting to review progress and discuss strategic priorities.
Following the event, participants joined the GEXIM@10 International Conference, held from March 24-25, 2026 under the theme, “A Decade of Enabling Export Trade and Industrial Transformation: Resetting GEXIM for the Next Frontier.”
The conference provided an important platform for exploring how Ghana can strengthen its transition from a primary commodity exporter to a more competitive player in value-added trade and industrial development.
Source – G-NEXID
President John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, signed five bills including three amendment bills passed by Parliament into law.
They are: Security and Intelligence Agencies Bill, 2025; University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Bill, 2025; Ghana Deposit Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2025; Growth and Sustainability Levy (Amendment) Bill, 2026; and Education Regulatory Bodies (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
In a brief remark after assenting to the bills, President Mahama explained that the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, 2026, scraps the Office of Minister of National Security and frees the President’s to appoint any Minister to supervise the security agencies.
He said it also reverses the name of the office of National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), to the original name, Bureau of National Intelligence, (BNI).
This the President said, addresses the confusion between that security agency and a well-known Ghanaian financial institution, the National Investment Bank.
President Mahama also noted that the University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Act, 2026, establishes another University in the Eastern Region, at Bonsu, with three campuses – the main campus at Bonsu in the Eastern Region, with the second campus to be cited at Ohawu in the Oti Region.
The third, the Presdient assed will be located at Acherensua in the Ahafo Region.
Touching on the Amendment to the Growth and Sustainability Levy Act, the President said, “As you’re aware, the act was amended to increase it from 1% to 3%, and so this act reduces it again. That is the levy on mining companies. It reduces it again to 1%, because of the introduction of the sliding scale of royalties.”
He also spoke to the passage of the Government Education Regulatory Bodies Amendment Act, emphasising that amends Act 1023 to grant greater flexibility to private tertiary institutions and the option to Charter.
The Ghana Deposit Protection Amendment Act, the President concluded, is an amendment to an original act that was supposed to guarantee deposits held in commercial banks or financial institutions.
It basically expands protection to include mobile money wallets and other digital platforms, ensuring a wider scope of digital financial assets are secured.
The signing ceremony, was witnessed by the Clerk of Parliament, Mr. Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Dominic Akrutinga Ayine, Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, a Senior Presidential Advisor and a Special Aide to the President, Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, and the Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
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