Former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has criticised the Mahama administration over its New Economy programme, accusing the government of repackaging the 24-Hour Economy initiative after failing to deliver on its promises.

He questioned why projects previously announced under the 24-Hour Economy had been transferred to the New Economy agenda, arguing that the move suggested the original programme had been abandoned.

His comments come after Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson presented the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to Parliament on Thursday, November 12, 2026.

Addressing journalists on Friday, November 13, 2026, Dr Amin Adam said the transfer of the projects confirmed his concerns about the government’s earlier flagship 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 called on the administration to tell Ghanaians the truth about the programme’s status.

“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.

The former Finance Minister also questioned the government’s capacity to raise the estimated US$10 billion needed to implement the New Economy programme over four years.

He argued that the administration had struggled to deliver the 24-Hour Economy, 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.

Dr Amin Adam also disputed claims that some projects under the New Economy were new, citing the oil palm development initiative.

He said the 2026 Budget, presented in November 2025, already contained plans to cultivate 100,000 hectares of oil palm and generate 250,000 jobs.

“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.

He questioned the decision to reintroduce the initiative as a new project, particularly when, according to him, the government had yet to acquire the land needed for its implementation.

He urged the government to clarify the status of the projects and explain how it would finance the proposed US$10 billion programme.

The New Economy programme is expected to begin in 2027, coinciding with Ghana’s 70th independence anniversary. Its objectives include reducing reliance on raw commodity exports, expanding domestic production and breaking recurring boom-and-bust economic cycles.

Dr Forson has described the initiative as an integrated production system that will direct investment into critical sectors while consolidating macroeconomic stability.