The renaming and rebranding of Ghana’s main airport, Kotoka International Airport (KIA), could come with a huge cost, as the proposal has sparked debate over the economic sense of the move.

The Government of Ghana is preparing to introduce a bill to change the name of the facility from Kotoka International Airport to Accra International Airport, citing the need to recognise the original landowners of the area.

Amid the discussions, questions have emerged about how much the renaming will cost taxpayers. Former Executive Director of the Advertising Association of Ghana, Frank Dadzie, has offered an estimate of what the rebranding exercise could mean financially for the country.

Renaming of Kotoka Airport not political – Transport minister

Speaking in an interview on JoyNews on February 5, 2026, Frank Dadzie explained that the proposed renaming and rebranding of KIA could cost between $2 million and $5 million, depending on the scope of the process.

“Conservatively, compared to other airports that have done some rebranding, we’re looking at between two to five million dollars to be able to effectively do this. But we also have to bear in mind that it might not be a full-scale rebranding, but a name change,” he stated.

He explained that the final cost would depend on whether the exercise is carried out as a complete rebranding or through a phased name change.

Frank Dadzie also suggested that the decision of the rebranding appears to be largely political and indicated that stakeholder engagement may not have been extensive so far.

He further noted that even after Parliament passes the necessary bill, several stages will still follow, with the entire renaming process likely to take between six months and a year to complete.

“It will take about a year because of the systems and processes involved. In the aviation industry, regulatory authorities, airline systems, ticketing platforms, and global maps and charts that reference KIA will all need updating to reflect the new name, AIA. This is not a walk in the park,” he explained.

AK/AM