President John Dramani Mahama on Friday said the government has cleared nearly 10 billion cedis in arrears owed to road contractors and launched what he described as the largest road investment programme in Ghana’s history, aimed at reviving stalled infrastructure and boosting economic growth.
Speaking during his State of the Nation Address, Mahama said the arrears, accumulated over several years, were paid by the end of 2025 through the Ministries of Finance and Roads, with efforts ongoing to further reduce debts in the sector.
At the centre of the strategy is the government’s flagship “Big Push” infrastructure programme, which Mahama described as a national drive to restore critical infrastructure, open up economic corridors, create jobs and lower the cost of doing business.
He said the bulk of funding under the programme is being channelled into road construction and rehabilitation.
According to the president, work has already begun on 50 major road projects covering 1,144 kilometres, with a combined estimated cost of 50 billion cedis. In addition, the government is completing 23 road projects awarded under the previous administration but left unpaid, spanning 573 kilometres at an estimated cost of 15 billion cedis.
“In effect, close to 2,000 kilometres of roads are currently under rehabilitation,” Mahama told Parliament, adding that the scale of investment is unprecedented in Ghana’s road sector.
He said a total of 73 road projects are progressing across all 16 regions, with “significant visible progress” expected by the end of the year.
Mahama argued that improved road infrastructure would strengthen regional trade, ease the movement of goods and people, and support broader economic recovery, as the government seeks to stabilise public finances while accelerating growth.
