Mr Reindolph Afrifa-Oware, Political Analyst has expressed worry that the 2026 State of the Nations Address ‘failed miserably’ to address the growing inequality gap among Ghanaians. 
 
President John Dramani Mahama presented the 2026 SoNA to Parliament on Friday February 27, 2026, highlighting key government interventions and strategies for the year. 
 
Reacting, Mr Afrifa-Oware, also the Director of Communications and Corporate Affairs of the National Tenants Union of Ghana, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at Dormaa-Ahenkro in the Bono Region that the nation’s economic indicators looked great “on paper” however many Ghanaians still grappled daily with high cost of living. 
 
He said that it was manifesting in issues of rent increases, food inflation, utility tariffs, youth unemployment, and rising cost of transport. 
 
“There is a growing emotional fatigue among ordinary Ghanaians. The SoNA projected stability, however, the streets reflect anxiety”, Mr Afrifa-Oware stated. 
 
He stressed the need “to match growth figures and the expansion of the Gross Domestic Product with realities like quality standard of living, inclusiveness and purchasing power”. 
 
Mr Afrifa-Oware expressed concern that real wages were stagnant as informal workers remained vulnerable with rent consuming 40 percent to 60 percent of incomes in urban areas while youth unemployment remained structurally high. 
 
He said: “Economic growth that does not reduce inequality, stabilize housing, and improves disposable income for the poor becomes growth without relief. 
 
Then growth becomes theoretical rather than transformational”. 
 
Mr Afrifa-Oware bemoaned that the young graduates continued to express their frustration over underemployment, which remained a major concern, as the government claimed providing and creating one million jobs. 
 
He said housing affordability remained out of reach for many of the working youth, questioning why the government allowed smallholder farmers to absorb global market adjustments. 
 
Mr Afrifa-Oware called on the government to establish buffers for smallholder farmers as subsidies or productivity incentives to cushion them against external shocks and impact. 
 
“When citizens feel, they are always asked to sacrifice, while accountability at higher levels appears limited. Public agitation intensifies”, he stated and reminded the government to build trust with the people by fulfilling its social contract. 
 
Mr Afrifa-Oware called on the government to implement socio-economic intervention policies that tackled the emerging needs of the people and thereby alleviate the plight of ordinary Ghanaians.