Circle Pedestrian Mall remains virtually empty after 10 years

It has been 10 years since the Kwame Nkrumah Circle Pedestrian Mall was constructed to house all hawkers at Circle and its environs.

But in a flagrant disregard to city authorities, the hawkers abandoned the mall, and took over every available pavement at the heart of the capital.

Government on Monday had cause to issue another directive instructing hawkers who are flouting the rules to move into the mall. Grace Hammoah Asare of 3FM’s Business visited the virtually empty market.

Ten years down the line, some portions of the mall remains unoccupied, though the multi-million Ghana cedis market was intended to contain street hawking which has become prevalent, especially in the central business district. Ironically, in front of the market is alive with activities of hawkers spilling over the carriageway.

The brisk scene worsens after 5p.m. when other hawkers from elsewhere in the city centre relocate to Kwame Nkrumah Circle for night trading.

An obviously disappointed stall occupant, Kofi Konadu, who sells shoes, says patronage in the mall keep dwindling, because patrons will rather buy from the street than enter the market. “Nobody comes to the market to buy from us.

They prefer buying from those in front”, he laments. Akosua Atta, another occupant, accused the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) of being unfair to law-abiding traders.

According to her, they spent fortunes to secure their sheds after they were assured that that all traders will be in the mall, but the situation gets worse by day. For the hawkers outside, trading inside is not strategic, as most of their patrons are outside.

Interaction with patrons indicated mixed preferences. While some preferred buying from the hawkers, others were comfortable buying from the stalls inside the mall.

“The question on my mind is how we make judicious use of our resources, if we abandon them. How do we ensure that our laws work for the mutual good of the entire citizenry? Well your guess is as good as mine,” Grace Hammoah Asare reports.