(Left) Prof. Isaac Boadi, Executive Director of the IERPP, and President John Mahama
By Bright Philip Donkor
The Institute of Economic Research and Public Policy (IERPP) will today, May 7, 2025, hold a press conference to present its assessment of President John Dramani Mahama’s first 120 days in office.
The IERPP assessment evaluates 25 key manifesto promises across four thematic areas, using verifiable implementation metrics and a weighted scoring system based on policy importance. The grading scale aligns with international standards for assessing government performance.
The event, scheduled to take place at the Ghana International Press Centre at 10:00 AM, will provide an in-depth review of the Mahama administration’s performance since the National Democratic Congress (NDC) assumed power.
Speaking to this paper, Prof. Isaac Boadi, Executive Director of the IERPP and Dean of the Faculty of Accounting and Finance at UPSA, explained that the assessment was necessary because then-candidate Mahama made specific promises to be delivered within his first 120 days in office ahead of the December 7, 2024 elections.
“These promises have been thoroughly evaluated by the Institute, and the outcomes will be shared publicly at the press conference,” Prof. Boadi said. The event will be held under the theme “The 120-Days Accountability Showdown: Are We Resetting or Repeating the Past?”.
Mahama’s 25 pledges in first 120 days
Meanwhile, President John Mahama will today render accounts on his first 120 days in office in relation to the pledge he made while campaigning to be elected as President for a second term.
He will do that via social media. The Minister of State in charge of Government Communications and Spokesperson for the President, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, made this known on Monday. He said President Mahama would meet the “press at a designated time and date later on, but on Wednesday, May 7, the President will do a broadcast to outline the implementation status of the 120-day pledge”.
Mr. Mahama, while campaigning to be elected as President in 2024, gave a 25-point plan outlining his priorities for the first 120 days if elected. The document, titled “Mahama’s First 120 Days Social Contract with the People of Ghana,” was released as part of the NDC’s manifesto launch on Saturday, August 24, 2024.
Key highlights of Mr. Mahama’s plan included the formation of what he promised will be the “leanest and most efficient” government in Ghana’s Fourth Republic within the first 90 days.
He committed to nominating his complete list of Cabinet Ministers for parliamentary approval within the first 14 days of his administration. Mr. Mahama also pledged to tackle the economic challenges facing the country, starting with a National Economic Dialogue aimed at addressing the true state of the economy.
He planned to prepare a homegrown fiscal consolidation programme to guide his administration’s first budget. Additionally, he pledged to scrap several taxes, including the E-levy and the COVID levy, within the first 90 days to alleviate the economic burden on Ghanaians.
On education, Mr. Mahama promised to introduce a “No-Academic-Fee” policy for first-year students in public tertiary institutions and to commence the distribution of free sanitary pads to female students in primary and secondary schools.
He also planned to implement social interventions such as Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities and the Ghana Medical Care Trust (MahamaCares) Fund.
In terms of governance, Mr. Mahama is committed to instituting inquiries and forensic audits into several matters of public interest, including the collapse of indigenous Ghanaian banks, the National Cathedral scandal, and the COVID-19 expenditure. He also plans to ban political appointees from purchasing state assets and to allocate seed money for the establishment of a Women’s Development Bank.
Mr. Mahama’s agenda also addresses environmental issues, with a plan to ban illegal mining activities in forest reserves and to launch the ‘Tree for Life’ and ‘Blue Water Initiative’ aimed at rehabilitating areas degraded by illegal mining.
Security is another priority, with Mr. Mahama pledging to commence investigations to purge state security agencies of militia and vigilante elements, and to reopen investigations into unresolved criminal cases, including the murder of journalist Ahmed Hussein-Suale.
Other significant points in his plan include launching job creation programmes such as the ‘Adwumawura’ and ‘National Apprenticeship’ programmes, reviewing the Customs (Amendment) Act 2020 to support the local automotive industry, and carrying out a shakeup of all loss-making state-owned enterprises.
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