President John Dramani Mahama has bemoaned the fact that for nearly 70 years, Ghana’s two most populous cities have been connected by a single carriageway.
President Mahama made the remarks in Kumasi on Monday, September 14, after the Ghana Armed Forces handed over the cleared 175.6-kilometre right of way for the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project to government at Kwaso, near Ejisu.
“This project is long overdue. These two cities are the cities with the biggest population in Ghana and they also have the largest commercial and economic activity in Ghana, Accra and Kumasi,” President Mahama said.
“We travel to other countries and even less important cities are connected by dual carriageways and triple carriageways. It is a shame that for 70 years we have had to have our two largest cities connected by a single carriageway. This is going to change,” he assured.
The ceremony marked a major milestone in the government’s Big Push Infrastructure Programme, with the 48 Engineer Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces completing the clearing of the 175.6km corridor in 19 weeks, one week ahead of the 20-week schedule.
President Mahama described the expressway as the single largest capital investment by any government in the history of Ghana.
Background
The Accra-Kumasi Expressway will cover about 198.7 kilometres from Ablekuma in the Greater Accra Region to Sewua in the Ashanti Region. The project comprises 176 kilometres of brand-new six-lane dual carriageway and about 23 kilometres of upgraded connector roads at the Accra and Kumasi ends.
According to the Managing Director of Accra-Kumasi Expressway Limited, Engineer Francis Ahlidza, the mainline will be built as a Class A highway with a 36-metre wide roadbed and a design speed of 120km/h.
The infrastructure will include 8 grade-separated interchanges, 11 vehicle overpasses, 55 mainline bridges, 9 at-grade intersections, about 200 box culverts, four service areas, eight tolling locations and an intelligent transport system.
Once completed, government says the road will reduce the travel distance between Accra and Kumasi by about 50 kilometres, cut travel time from about six hours to two hours, and reduce travel costs by 40%.
On financing, the Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, assured the nation at the same ceremony that the entire amount needed for the project will be ready by December 2026 without borrowing a pesewa.
Government had earlier announced that US$1.7 billion had been ring-fenced for the project, with President Mahama indicating at the handover that an initial $2 billion is now available, expected to hit $4 billion by the end of the year.
The Ministry of Roads and Highways published an Expression of Interest for pre-qualification of contractors on September 11, 2026.
