The Government has announced plans to commemorate the 68th Independence Day at the Jubilee House in Accra.
The Minister in charge of Government Communications, Felix Ofosu Kwakye, revealed this during a press conference on Wednesday, February 12, 2025.
According to the Minister, the decision to celebrate the day at the Jubilee House is aimed at reducing costs.
He stated that the regional rotational celebration has been paused, as the 2023 event cost the country GH¢15 million.
"Whereas the intentions may be noble, President Mahama has asked that the rotational policy be suspended because of the need to scale down, and this has become necessary due to escalating costs. It has been discovered after some review that the rotation imposed additional cost, and therefore, at a time when our national budget is severely constrained due to economic difficulties, it was not going to be sustainable to keep rotating the national celebrations."
Indeed, if I were to put figures on how much it costs, you would find out that depending on where the celebrations are sent, there are significant cost implications. For instance, the last celebrations held in Ho cost the country a staggering GHS15 million, and every time it has been sent to a different regional capital aside from Accra, we've had to bear such cost.
"In the spirit of cutting down on non-essential expenditure, President Mahama has instructed that this rotational policy be suspended. In addition to this, the main celebration, which ordinarily would have taken place in Accra at Independence Square, has become the subject of some rollback.
Ofosu Kwakye mentioned that, the event will include a Military Guard of Honour reviewed by the President, cultural performances by two groups of basic school pupils, and a poetry recital by senior high school students.
He also stated that, the event would be witnessed by a few selected individuals from society and would be complimented with the President’s ceremonial address.