The Leader of the United Party (UP), Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, has opposed the government’s decision to use public funds to finance the construction of the 175.6-kilometre Accra-Kumasi Expressway.
Alan said the project, which is expected to require substantial financial resources, could instead have been structured as a private-sector investment, particularly because the completed highway is expected to generate revenue through tolling.
Speaking at a public lecture at the British Council in Accra on Wednesday, September 23, Alan acknowledged the government’s decision to pursue the long-awaited expressway but argued that the financing model could place an unnecessary burden on the state.
“We should commend the NDC government for thinking about the Accra-Kumasi Expressway. But I think the government should not fund the $4 billion expressway. Why should you fund a road that can be tolled? It should have been given to the private sector. $4 billion could have done a lot for Ghana.”
He argued that the commercial potential of the expressway makes it suitable for private-sector financing, particularly under a model where investors could recover their investment through toll revenues generated from road users over an agreed period.
In his view, the government could have preserved the funds earmarked for the project and redirected them towards other areas requiring significant public investment, including social infrastructure and other development priorities.
The 175.6-kilometre project is expected to involve the construction of a high-capacity expressway with interchanges, overpasses and bridges designed to improve the movement of people and goods between Accra and Kumasi.
At a right-of-way handing over ceremony on Monday, September 14, President John Dramani Mahama said about $2 billion had already been made available to facilitate the commencement of the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project.
Source:Fiilafmonline/CitiNews
