Tension is mounting at the Ashaiman Main Market in Ghana’s Greater Accra Region, as traders voice opposition to government plans to redevelop the congested facility into a modern, 24-hour market.
The proposed project, according to the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly, is part of a wider market redevelopment programme promised by the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) ahead of the 2024 general elections. However, traders say they fear the initiative could result in the loss of their stalls and threaten their livelihoods.
Several market women told JoyNews they were anxious about the plans and warned that any attempt to remove them from their trading spaces would be strongly resisted.
“If they want to improve the market, they should talk to us first,” one trader said. “People are struggling to survive, and now you say you will sack them from the market. What are we supposed to eat?”
The Ashaiman Municipal Chief Executive, Freeman Tsekpo, has sought to reassure traders, insisting that no one would be displaced once the redevelopment is completed. He said the project would be fully funded by the government and would not involve the sale of the market to private developers.
“The market we want to redevelop is a state-owned market that will be built with government funds,” Mr Tsekpo said. “The people currently trading here will be taken care of and will continue to sell there. This is not about handing the market over to a private developer who will later allocate spaces to the highest bidder.”
To limit disruption during construction, he said the assembly would provide temporary alternative trading locations to allow business activities to continue.
“People must continue to eat,” he added. “We will still need to buy tomatoes, peppers, fish and salt, and traders will be provided with places to sell while work is ongoing.”
Mr Tsekpo also pledged sustained engagement with market leaders to ensure transparency and fairness throughout the process. He said the assembly would carry out a detailed data collection exercise to identify legitimate stall, shop and tabletop owners.
“There will be proper and effective engagement within the market,” he said. “We will take data on those who own sheds, stores, shops and tabletops, and we want the leadership to work closely with us so that during and after the project, people are placed back in their rightful positions.”
The municipal authorities insist that the interests of existing traders have been factored into the project’s design and that market women and men currently operating at Ashaiman Main Market will retain their spaces once redevelopment is completed.
Source: Joy News
