By Sammy CRABBE
Before skyscrapers pierce the sky, before bustling streets and gleaming innovation hubs emerge, the true work of city-building begins underground. The One Square Mile project is no exception.
Success will not be measured first by its skyline but by the invisible systems – the water pipes, the fibre networks, the smart grids, and the roads – that make life and business flow effortlessly.
Phase One of the One Square Mile execution plan is the Early Enabling Works Phase: a disciplined, technically sound preparation phase that clears, connects, and structures the land for everything that will follow.
This phase is not glamorous, but it is critical. It is where the dream transitions from imagination to reality.
Site clearance and land preparation
The first practical step will be clearing and preparing the site. This will involve careful demolition of any obsolete structures, sustainable clearing of vegetation, levelling, and soil compaction to ensure a strong foundation.
Environmental assessments will be conducted to preserve ecological balance and manage drainage effectively. Temporary fencing and security installations will be established around the perimeter to safeguard both equipment and workers, ensuring a professional, orderly start.
At this stage, site logistics must be organized to military precision. Dedicated access points for construction vehicles will be set up.
Staging areas for materials storage, worker accommodations, and safety hubs will be created. This is the phase where the ground is disciplined, structured, and made ready to receive the future.
Underground infrastructure – The city’s circulatory system
Once the land is prepared, work will begin on laying basic underground infrastructure. These networks are the silent arteries and veins of a smart city – rarely seen, but absolutely essential to its health and functioning.
Water distribution pipelines will be installed first, followed by sewerage systems designed with future growth in mind.
Stormwater drainage systems will be laid out strategically to ensure resilience against climate variability and heavy rains, incorporating smart drainage solutions where possible.
Electrical ducting systems and fibre-optic cable conduits will also be embedded underground in shared utility corridors, making future maintenance easy and minimizing surface disruption.
At this phase, the city’s essential circulatory system is woven into the land itself. Every pipe and cable placed is a step toward enabling the One Square Mile to function seamlessly as a living, breathing organism.
Arterial roads and mobility skeleton
Next will come the construction of arterial roads – the primary corridors that will define the shape, access, and mobility flows of the future city. These early roads will be more than asphalt and concrete.
They will be smart roads, designed with embedded sensors for traffic monitoring, EV charging readiness, and long-term adaptability to autonomous vehicles.
Carefully planned road networks will ensure that residential, commercial, recreational, and innovation spaces can all interconnect smoothly, without future congestion bottlenecks.
Road construction will prioritize modularity and scalability, allowing for easy expansion as the One Square Mile grows. Simultaneously, dedicated pedestrian and bicycle pathways will be integrated alongside vehicle routes to foster a walkable, human-centered environment from the start.
Temporary construction and management hubs
To support the massive work of early infrastructure development, temporary management hubs will be set up on-site.
These hubs will house project managers, architects, engineers, surveyors, environmental officers, safety coordinators, and administrative teams.
These operational centres will serve as nerve centres for coordination, inspections, documentation, and stakeholder engagement during the Early Enabling Works Phase.
A digital project management system will be deployed from day one, ensuring real-time monitoring of site progress, material inventories, worker safety compliance, and environmental standards.
This approach reflects a broader principle: the One Square Mile is not being built chaotically. It is being orchestrated – professionally, transparently, and to international best practices.
Early branding and investor engagement
While physical foundations are being laid, the branding foundations must be built in parallel. A One Square Mile Welcome Centre will be set up adjacent to the construction zone, offering a digital-first, immersive visitor experience.
Through VR simulations, smart models, and interactive exhibits, investors, partners, government officials, and citizens will be able to visualize the emerging city even before the first permanent buildings rise.
Marketing materials, online portals, and media engagement campaigns will showcase the city’s masterplan, infrastructure progress, and investment opportunities. Early momentum will be critical.
Investors need to feel that they are part of a living, breathing, unstoppable movement – not simply speculating on a drawing. In this phase, confidence will be our first product, even before roads are paved.
Setting up the One Square Mile Authority
Crucially, this phase will also see the full operational setup of the One Square Mile Authority.
The Authority’s early teams – covering land management, permitting, citizen engagement, security, planning, and innovation policy – will be onboarded and trained. Systems for permit approvals, land leasing, and business licensing will go live digitally, ready to serve early pioneers.
By establishing governance structures early, the One Square Mile ensures that physical development is matched by institutional maturity. This will be a place where doing business is fast, transparent, and investor-friendly from the beginning – a city that operates at the speed of ambition.
Conclusion: The quiet work that builds greatness
The Early Enabling Works Phase may not yield spectacular photographs. There will be no glossy towers yet, no bustling markets or buzzing tech campuses.
What there will be, however, is something even more important: the laying of a flawless foundation. With discipline, expertise, and vision, this first phase will transform open land into the canvas upon which the future of Ghana’s digital economy will be painted.
By the time the first innovators and entrepreneurs arrive, the One Square Mile will already be alive beneath their feet – ready to power dreams that will reach far beyond Accra, far beyond Ghana, and into the future of Africa itself.
>>>the writer is a PhD researcher specializing in blockchains and decentralized finance at the University of Bradford. He holds an MBA in International Marketing and a post-graduate certificate is research from the International University of Monaco. Sammy was the first president of the Ghana Business Outsourcing Association and developed Africa’s first data entry operation and Ghana’s first medical transcription company. He can be reached via [email protected]
