EXPLAINER: Why is the Bank of Ghana building a new US$250 million head office?
The central bank issued a statement on Wednesday (9 August) saying the current BoG head office building “does not satisfy the full complement of excess strength required for a building to be considered safe for usage”
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has justified why it is building a new head office, estimated at US$250 million in Accra after the Minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs described the venture as misplaced priority.
The central bank issued a statement on Wednesday (9 August) saying the current BoG head office building “does not satisfy the full complement of excess strength required for a building to be considered safe for usage.”
“A structural integrity assessment conducted by the BoG revealed that the current BoG Head Office building, built by the Nkrumah Government in the early 1960s, is no longer fit for purpose and could not stand any major earth tremors.
“The outcome of the structural integrity work was that the main building does not satisfy the full complement of excess strength required for a building to be considered safe for usage. This means that in the case of a worst-case gravity and wind loading scenario, for example, unusually strong wind, the building may be significantly affected,” the statement added.
It continued: “The building also does not have the required strength to withstand the expected imposed significant earthquake loads that would be expected to occur in the Accra area. Based on the above, and looking at the strategic objective of positioning Ghana as the financial hub of the subregion, with prospects of a potential Headquarters for a future regional Central Bank, the Board and Management of the Bank considered a new Head Office building as the most important priority project to support the operational efficiency of the Bank, and also position the Bank of Ghana in a very good position to be the host of the regional Central Bank as we currently host the West African Monetary Institute (WAMI) of the Sub region.”
Below is the full statement:
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