By Godwin Owusu Frimpong
Accra faces a growing crisis as authorities enforce a decongestion operation impacting countless street traders. A sweeping three-day operation by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) is underway in Ghana’s capital, aiming to clear unauthorised structures and street hawkers from key roadways. But beneath the enforcement lies a growing tension between urban order and economic survival, as struggling traders plead for empathy amid the rising cost of living. Their livelihoods are torn apart and questions are asked about the alternatives available.
“We are mothers; things are hard for us. We beg him,” a female trader lamented on Tuesday, just hours after AMA officials and police commenced the first phase of the crackdown in Accra’s bustling Central Business District. She, like many others, is now facing an uncertain future.
The exercise, which began on May 20, targets critical corridors stretching from the AMA Head Office through Zongo Lane to Adabraka. The focus is on removing footpath obstructions and makeshift stalls that violate AMA Hawkers Bye-Laws (2017) and Section 117(1) of the Road Traffic Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2180).
Mayor Michael Kpakpo Allotey, Ghana’s youngest-ever city mayor, is at the centre of the exercise, drawing a firm line between governance and populism. He defended the action, suggesting his conscience is clear in carrying out such a controversial decision.
Allotey, who described himself as “prepared for anything ahead,” insisted the motivation was civic-minded, and explicitly not political.
“This is not NDC or NPP. Don’t blackmail me with party sentiments. When Ghana spoils, there will be no NDC.”
While the Mayor is resolute in his vision for a decongested Accra, the question remains: what sustainable alternatives exist for these displaced traders aside from political rhetoric? The urgency of finding solutions that balance urban development with economic realities is now a critical challenge for authorities. The plight of the traders raises fundamental questions: Is this action merely displacing poverty, or is it creating conditions for true economic progress?
Godwin Owusu Frimpong
