The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has begun enforcement of its decongestion operations in the Central Business District (CBD), with a task force clearing trading and other activities from restricted road shoulders and pavements demarcated under the “red line” policy.

The enforcement exercise, which formed part of the broader decongestion programme announced to take effect from February 1, started around 7 a.m. and ended about 5 p.m., after the team moved through key corridors from the AMA premises at Kinbu to the CMB area near the Central Police, through UTC, Rawlings Park and the Law School enclave, before concluding around the Cocoa Board median towards the Farisco traffic light.

Leading the operation, the Mayor of Accra, Hon. Michael Kpakpo Allotey, cautioned traders against paying money to city guards, building inspectors or any intermediaries, and stressed that government land and designated trading spaces were not for sale.

 He warned that goods found on the wrong side of the red line risked seizure, while offenders could face prosecution at the sanitation court and be made to pay statutory fines.

The Mayor maintained that the operation was not intended to “sack” traders, but to restore order, improve safety and enhance the city’s appearance, adding that the Assembly’s priority was to stop trading on roads and pavements, prevent refuse accumulation in busy commercial stretches, and ensure public spaces were used for their intended purpose.

He cautioned against the use of vulnerability to resist compliance, insisting that the rules applied to all traders operating along restricted corridors.

Addressing the media, the  Mayor said the Assembly had deliberately allowed extended selling during the Christmas period, including an additional month after the festive season, to help traders take advantage of peak sales, stressing that the festive window had closed and that enforcement would now be applied consistently, with limited allowances only during official holidays.

Touching on public concerns about extortion and intimidation, the Mayor reiterated that no individual had the authority to demand money from traders under the guise of protecting spaces.

He said the only approved payments in markets were official daily collections, including the Assembly’s Two Ghana Cedis (GH¢2) ticketing system, and warned that anyone caught taking unauthorised fees would be dealt with.

The Mayor linked the decongestion drive to broader government efforts to stabilise the economy and improve urban management, arguing that citizens also had a duty to support national recovery by obeying local regulations, citing recent economic conditions, including currency pressures and fuel price movements.

 He explained that the Assembly was pursuing market redevelopment as a long-term solution to congestion, saying work was ongoing at several sites, including Salaga and the Tuesday Market, with additional markets planned across the metropolis.