Traders in Kumasi demand controls on transfer and leasing of trading spaces — MyJoyOnline
Traders at the Central Market in Kumasi, Ghana, have called for tighter controls on the transfer and leasing of trading spaces. The call follows reports that some owners are transferring or leasing such spaces for substantially higher amounts than they paid when acquiring them.
Approval of transactions
President of the Kumasi Traders Federation Nana Akwasi Prempeh said these transactions are carried out not by the market administration but by private individuals. As MyJoyOnline reports, he proposed introducing clear rules under which owners would have to obtain permission from the administration before leasing or transferring a space.
According to Prempeh, the administration should have mechanisms to track such transactions. In his view, this would help prevent the rapid rise in the cost of trading spaces from undermining the revenue needed for the market's reconstruction.
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Payments and reconstruction
The local government minister previously said that some owners obtained trading spaces after paying about 25,000 Ghanaian cedis and later lease them for substantially higher amounts — in some cases for 100,000 cedis.
Kumasi Mayor Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi noted that transferring a trading space at a higher price is not necessarily a violation. He called for consultations with traders' leaders and financial institutions to develop mechanisms to regulate the rise in the cost of such spaces.
Prempeh also urged owners to settle outstanding payments for trading spaces. The mayor warned that those who fail to pay by December 31, 2026, risk losing their spaces. City authorities seek to increase market revenue to finance reconstruction, the next stage of which was resumed after years of delays.
