As announced last year by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), its new headquarters, a 21-story structure situated in Ridge, has been completed and was commissioned by President Akufo-Addo today.
The project costing $250 million consists of three main blocks namely the Tower, Urban and Amenities Blocks including basements, podium and ancillary
facilities.
At Wednesday’s event, BoG Governor, Dr. Ernest Addison emphasised that the primary objective of the new headquarters is to streamline the bank’s activities by consolidating its multiple offices scattered across Accra under one roof.
“As you may be aware, the Bank of Ghana has multiple offices in the city of Accra and with a strategic plan to harmonise all these operational units at the headquarters under one roof. This new head office provides us with the opportunity to better streamline our operations, improve communication, reduce cost and create the needed synergies for efficiency.
“The Bank Square was designed with the future in mind and stands as one of the most important modern civic landmarks in the city of Accra and for that matter, our nation. This building will play a pivotal role in shaping Ghana’s identity as a leading force in Africa’s financial ecosystem,” he said.
Plans to construct the eddifice met stern public criticism, especially from the Minority in Parliament. A formal petition from Bawku Central MP, Mahama Ayariga, who raised concerns about the substantial increase in project cost without approval from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) was presented to the Office of the Special Prosecutor for probing.
It is unknown the current state of the investigations; however, the facility was commissioned today.
Work on the new head office commenced in 2019 after the Board of the Bank at its 662nd Regular Meeting directed the Corporate Management and Services Department (CMSD) of the Bank by a decision dated 18th December 2019 to initiate all proper processes for its development.
Following the directive, the Bank noted that it went through the required processes to acquire a parcel of land at West Ridge, which was previously owned by State Insurance Company (SIC).
The land was compulsorily acquired by the Government of Ghana by Executive Instrument, 2020 E.I 304 for the New Bank of Ghana Headquarters, a building of national interest. The compulsory acquisition process started in 2019 and the Executive Instrument was published and gazetted in 2020.
Approval from Public Procurement Authority
The Central Bank then wrote to the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) on January 14, 2020, for approval to use the Restricted Tender Method. This procurement method was on the basis of national security considerations.
The following firms, known to be operating in Ghana, were shortlisted: MAN Enterprise, WBHO Ghana Ltd, De Simone Ltd, Goldkey Properties Ltd., and Ronesans Construction.
Subsequently, tenders were opened on June 19, 2020, at 11am and were later evaluated between July 6 and 17, 2020.
After evaluation of tenders were received, the Entity Tender Committee (ETC) of the Bank at its meeting held on August 6, 2020 considered Tender Evaluation Panel’s recommendation and approved the award of contract for the project to Messrs Goldkey Properties Limited at the cost of $121,078,517.94.
The PPA later revised the initial approved estimated amount from USD81,882,640.00 to USD121,078,517.94.
Following this, the Central Tender Review Committee (CTRC) on September 4, 2020, granted concurrent approval to the Bank to engage the recommended Tenderer, Messrs. Goldkey Properties Limited, at a contract price of USD121,078,517.94.
Commencement of work
The project site was formally handed over to the contractor in March 2021 for commencement of preliminary site works and designs.
Later on, there was a review of the design, prompting the ETC of the Bank at its meeting held on 19th December 2022 to revise the project cost of USD2,068.00/m2.
CTRC subsequently granted concurrent approval for the revised scope of works at cost of USD2,068.00/m2 on 17th January 2023.