Kanawu Radio number 1 news portal
Some 18 factories have been accredited under the Akufo-Addo government’s One District-One Factory policy with 50 more to receive accreditation by the end of 2018, Information Minister-designate Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, has said.
“As I speak to you this morning, 18 factories have been accredited so far and a good number of them have been visited by President Akufo-Addo”, Mr Oppong-Nkrumah told journalists at a press conference on Tuesday, 9 October, adding: “An additional 50 are expected to be accredited before the end of this year and this should bring to almost 70 the 1D1F project by the end of 2018”.
“It is a paradigm that seeks to create jobs at the local level and bring with it the many benefits including jobs, incomes and local development. For the avoidance of doubt, the NPP’s commitment is on page 43 of the party’s manifesto which states that in collaboration with the private sector, the NPP will implement the One District-One Factory initiative”, he said.
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah said 10 financial institutions have committed GHS4.5 billion to the programme so far – four more since August this year when Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo announced that a total of GHS2,648,000,000 had been allocated to the programme by six banks.
He said GCB Bank has agreed to make available GHS1 billion, UBA has agreed to support it with GHS880 million, ADB – GHS200 million, Exim Bank – GHS1.7 billion, UMB – GHS440 million, and Ecobank – GHS150 million.
The government aims to put up 216 factories through the policy across the country.
As of August this year, Mr Osafo-Maafo said the Ministry of Trade and Industry had received 781 expressions of interest, out of which 632 had been reviewed with 332 currently being processed for financial support.
