President John Dramani Mahama has stressed the need to critically examine how the country’s markets are planned.

“It is time for Ghana to start rethinking how we plan our markets to prevent the recurrence of fires,” he stated during a visit to the devastating fire disaster scene at Adum, the central business district of Kumasi.

He described the situation as very sad, considering the extent of damage caused by the fire, which started early in the morning on Friday, March 21, 2025.

Three major storey buildings, which contained many stores, along with hundreds of container shops, stalls, and table-top shops, with merchandise worth millions of Ghana cedis, were destroyed in the devastating fire that occurred between Hello FM and the Kumasi Central Market.

No casualties were recorded, but two people, including a fire officer, were injured in the incident.

The lack of access roads to the enclave between Hello FM and the Kumasi Central Market impeded efforts by firefighters to control the blaze in time.

President John Dramani Mahama thanked the Ghana National Fire Service officers for their prompt response, which helped prevent the fire from spreading beyond the enclave.

According to him, information he received from fire officers indicated that the lack of access contributed to the inability of fire tenders to put out the fire in time.

He extended sympathies to the affected traders and said he had asked NADMO, the Regional Coordinating Council, and other relief agencies to support the affected traders while efforts were made to rebuild the market.