The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) has issued a public warning urging residents not to pay money to any individual or group claiming the ability to secure shop allocations at the Kejetia Market Phase 2 project, saying no such private allocation arrangement exists and that all official processes will be conducted transparently through the Assembly.
Kumasi Mayor Richard Ofori-Agyeman Boadi made the caution on Friday, February 27, 2026, during an appearance on the Ghanakoma morning show on Akoma 87.9FM in Kumasi, where he said fraudsters were exploiting public excitement about the project’s approaching completion to extort money from prospective traders.
“We want to caution the general public not to pay monies to persons who promise to allocate shops to them at Kejetia Phase 2. The Assembly will handle all legitimate allocations when the time comes,” the Mayor said.
The warning comes as work on the Kejetia Central Market Redevelopment Project Phase 2 accelerates following a presidential directive. President Mahama confirmed during his regional thank-you tour in July 2025 that the project was 66 percent complete and that contractors had been instructed to deliver it by end-2026, with priority pledged to traders displaced during the reconstruction process.
Phase 2 was sod-cut on May 2, 2019, under the Akufo-Addo administration and is estimated to cost approximately US$248 million, financed by Deutsche Bank. The combined cost of both phases now exceeds US$507 million, making the Kejetia Central Market Redevelopment one of the largest public infrastructure investments in Ghanaian history.
Kejetia Market serves an estimated 500,000 visitors daily and is widely regarded as the largest market in West Africa. It draws traders from across Ghana and neighbouring countries including Benin and Togo, making shop space at the facility highly coveted and a prime target for allocation fraud.
Mayor Boadi urged members of the public who encounter anyone demanding payment for shop allocations to report them to the Assembly or to the police immediately. He said the KMA would make formal public announcements through verified channels when legitimate allocation processes were ready to begin.
