Mahama Set to Deliver 120-Day Progress Update on Wednesday

President John Dramani Mahama will on Wednesday, May 7, provide an official update on the performance of his administration during its first 120 days in office. The address, which will be shared via social media platforms, is part of the President’s commitment to transparency and accountability, stemming from a campaign promise to regularly report to citizens on the progress of his government.

This announcement was made by the Minister of State in charge of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, who disclosed that while a formal press engagement is being planned for a later date, Wednesday’s update will focus solely on evaluating the status of Mahama’s “First 120 Days Social Contract.”

The document—unveiled during the National Democratic Congress (NDC) manifesto launch on August 24, 2024—outlined 25 priority actions the then-presidential candidate pledged to execute within his first 120 days if elected. The social contract aimed to set a new benchmark for leadership accountability and early governance impact.

The outlined commitments span across economic policy, education, governance reform, social interventions, environmental protection, and job creation. One of the first pledges was to form a lean and efficient government within 90 days and to submit a full list of cabinet nominees to Parliament within the first two weeks of assuming office. This move, Mahama argued, was essential for restoring discipline and effectiveness in public administration.

In terms of economic policy, Mahama promised to organize a National Economic Dialogue to assess Ghana’s true fiscal condition and to formulate a homegrown economic recovery strategy to shape the administration’s first national budget. A central element of this plan involved scrapping several controversial taxes—such as the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy), the COVID-19 Health Levy, the 10% betting tax, and the Emissions Levy—within 90 days to ease the financial burden on citizens and stimulate business activity.

The President also committed to reviewing taxes on imported vehicles and equipment used in agriculture and industry to support production and job creation.

On education and health, Mahama pledged to implement a “No-Academic-Fee” policy for first-year students in public tertiary institutions and to roll out free sanitary pad distribution to female students in basic and senior high schools. He also proposed introducing free tertiary education for persons with disabilities and establishing the Ghana Medical Care Trust Fund (MahamaCares) to expand healthcare access.

In the area of governance and anti-corruption, Mahama’s plan includes launching forensic investigations into high-profile public interest matters. These include the collapse of indigenous banks, the National Cathedral project, emergency COVID-19 spending, and other alleged mismanagement cases. To strengthen accountability further, he proposed banning political appointees from purchasing state assets and streamlining the government scholarship system to eliminate nepotism and abuse.

The President also pledged to allocate funds toward the creation of a Women’s Development Bank to support female entrepreneurship and economic inclusion.

Mahama’s 120-day vision also included strong environmental measures, such as a ban on illegal mining in forest reserves and the introduction of reforestation and water protection initiatives, including the ‘Tree for Life’ and ‘Blue Water’ programs.

On national security, he vowed to initiate reforms to eliminate partisan militia influence within state security agencies and reopen investigations into unresolved crimes, such as the murder of investigative journalist Ahmed Hussein-Suale and incidents of electoral violence.

Job creation was another key focus, with promises to launch the “Adwumawura” employment initiative, the National Apprenticeship Programme, and a “One Million Coders” digital skills project to tackle youth unemployment.

With the 120-day deadline now reached, President Mahama’s upcoming address is expected to outline what has been achieved so far, what remains in progress, and how the government plans to sustain momentum moving forward.

Ghanaians across the country await the update with anticipation, eager to measure the administration’s performance against the promises that ushered it into office.