The Bank of Ghana says its new multi-purpose building at Ridge in Accra will be completed in 2024.
According to a document issued by the BOG, the progress of work on the edifice currently stands at 41 percent.
The edifice is a 13 storey facility which has been mired in controversy since news broke about its construction.
Some civil society groups have kicked against the construction of the new BOG office, citing hardships in the country.
Minority MPs have also voiced their revulsion to the construction of the edifice, asking the Governor and his two deputies to bow out.
The BoG document disclosed that internal blockwork is ongoing at various levels in both Tower and Urban blocks with mechanical, electrical and plumbing fixes also at various levels.
This was disclosed in a document issued by the Bank of Ghana in Accra on August 21.
The Minority in Parliament and other Civil Society Organisations have vehemently kicked against the new edifice arguing that such projects are not needed looking at the country’s current economic situation.
They have thus lashed out at the Governor of the Bank of Ghana and his deputies, calling for their resignations.
They have announced their intention to picket at the premises of the Bank of Ghana on September 5, to demand the resignation of these officials.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Ghana in its document made the following announcement:
“Currently, physical progress on site stands at 41% and is summarized as follows:
▪ Tower Block Up to 13th Floor slab casting completed.
▪ Urban Block: Upper Roof Slab casting completed.
▪ Amenities (Auditorium) Block: Upper Ground slab Casting completed.
▪ Other works: Internal blockwork is ongoing at various levels in both Tower and Urban blocks.
Mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) first fixes ongoing at various levels
The Project is expected to be completed in September 2024.”
Background
In the 1990s, the Bank of Ghana began the search for adequate and secured land for a new Head Office, given that the Central Business District had caught up with the existing Head Office and the need to expand to meet its growing operations.
i. In the year 2011, the Board of Directors of the bank agreed that the Bank must consider looking for a suitable land for the new headquarters.
ii. In 2012 the Bank was allocated an 5.19-acre land at Accra Central by the Lands Commission and a total of GHS 791,580.00 was paid. The Bank however was not given access to the land as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration refused to grant the Bank vacant possession on the grounds that they had never agreed to give up ownership of the land.
iii. Several offers were made to the Bank between 2012 and 2016 including parcels of land near the Ridge Hospital, Airport City, around 37 Military Hospital, Achimota Forest among others. Due diligence made on these plots indicated that they were either encumbered, had unfavourable terms or that these lands were not suitable for the Bank’s purpose.
iv. The requirement for land for the new Headquarters became urgent when the structural failure on the existing Head Office became pronounced with more serious cracks showing on the building and portions of the structure falling off. Having been apprised of the nature of the Head Office building on Thorpe Road through a Condition Survey by the Estate Office, the Bank commissioned ESPCo, a third-party Engineering Firm to undertake a Structural Integrity Audit of the facility, which revealed that the current Bank of Ghana Head Office, built by the Nkrumah Government in the late1950s was no longer fit for purpose and could not withstand any major earth tremors.
v. The Board of the Bank at its 662nd Regular Meeting directed the Corporate Management and Services Department (CMSD) of the Bank by a decision dated 18th December 2019 to initiate all proper processes for the development of a New Corporate Headquarters for the Bank.
vi. Subsequently, the Bank went through the required processes to acquire a parcel of land at West Ridge, which was previously owned by the State Insurance Company (SIC). The land was compulsorily acquired by the Government of Ghana by Executive Instrument, 2020 E.I 304 for the New Bank of Ghana Headquarters, a building of national interest. The compulsory acquisition process started in 2019 and the Executive Instrument was published and gazetted in 2020.
