Bright Simons, the Vice President of Policy Think Tank IMANI Africa, has alleged that the newly constructed Bank of Ghana (BoG) headquarters actually cost around $600m, not $250m.
In a post on X, Bright Simons argued that the Bank of Ghana’s new headquarters is actually in the range of $600m if we are to be strict about the numbers.
Bright Simons, in his post, detailed, “In March 2025, the BoG told Parliament that it had tasked AESL to undertake a value-for-money audit into the HQ project. 15 months onwards, it simply REFUSES to publish the audit report.
According to Bright Simons, the costs of the BoG giant edifice are a total black box, adding that the whole project has been a masterpiece of opacity. Let me jog some memories.
Which is a serious problem because the costs of that giant edifice are a total black box, and the whole project has been a masterpiece of opacity. Let me jog some memories.
BoG’s Board took the decision to initiate the project in Dec 2019. The allocated budget was ~$100m. The procurement authority approved ~$81.9m. After the restricted tender was won by the contractor, the budget was suddenly jacked up to $121m. The BoG Board finally settled on $222.8m with the contractor.
But as I hinted earlier, the project is actually in the range of $600m if we are to be strict about the numbers”.
He further disclosed that, “In Feb 2025:
– $230m had been paid to the contractor.
– $31.8m was owed to the contractor.
– $8.6m was earmarked for a separate ICT contract.
– $15.8m was earmarked for integrated electronic security systems.
– $11.1m was earmarked for furniture & furnishings
– $48m was allocated for taxes & levies.
That is $345m, I lie?
Well, the original design that was costed for the clearly discredited tender at $100m included a bunch of things that the $345m hasn’t delivered. And remember that the earmarked allocations were merely on budget. If cost overruns are just 2x, how much really are we talking about?
Here are the original design items that are yet to be delivered. According to the BoG, “grey boxes” have been provided for them to be added later:
– Data Center
– Currency Processing Center (no accounting, by the way, for the underserviced De La Rue-provisioned system),
– Specialised Security System
– Still not clear if the helipad is fully functional
Now, let’s add the piece everyone forgets: the prime land!
The BoG acquired the West Ridge/SIC land by compulsory acquisition through E.I. 304. The going rate in that prime area is easily $1500 per sq m. BoG doubled the acreage of Bank Square from 73,000 sqm to nearly 150,000 sq m. That is $225m of prime land!
In short, this is a $600 million (& counting) project that has katanomically been hoisted as a massive success because of zero policy accountability.
What continues to fascinate me is how well katanomics explains this opacity (with elite complicity) and lack of policy accountability in a democracy as vibrant as Ghana”.
Meanwhile, it will be recalled that the construction of the Bank Square commenced in 2019 during the administration of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government and was later commissioned by then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in November 2024.
The facility replaced the Bank of Ghana’s former headquarters, which public officials claimed had become inadequate and posed safety concerns.
Also, the Bank of Ghana officially moved its operations to The Bank Square in September 2025.
See the post below:
1. A major news channel in Ghana says there is a ruckus in the Bank of Ghana (BoG) board. One faction wants the BoG's swanky/controversial new HQ sold to a lucky real estate company and leased back at a juicy rate.
— Bright Simons (@BBSimons) June 2, 2026
2. Apparently, a shrewd financier hopes to get bank financing… pic.twitter.com/s5vS0EBCAi
