GIHOC to revive Aboso Glass Factory

The Management of GIHOC Distilleries led by the Managing Director, Mr. Maxwell Kofi Jumah, has paid a working visit to the Aboso Glass Factory located at Tarkwa in the Wassa West District of the Western region of Ghana.

This was the first batch of a management team visit to the glass factory.

The aim of the visit, according to the Media Relations Manager of GIHOC, Afua Foriwaa Boafoh, was to assess the current state of the Glass Factory which is already under rehabilitation works.

“The GIHOC delegation were satisfied with the assessment after the visit and would soon roll out a road map towards a major facelift of the Glass Factory,” Afua Foriwaa Boafoh revealed.

The Aboso Glass Factory has been producing glass bottles for GIHOC’s top brand liquors including Castle Bridge, Kaiser, Schnapps amongst others.

The Glass factory has also been producing glass bottles for Coke, Guinness, making it one of the best manufacturers of glasses and bottles in West Africa.

On the marketing potential, when the rehabilitation is complete, it would offer GIHOC the opportunity to access glasses and bottles produced locally by the glass factory as against the import of such materials for the production of drinks.

Currently, GIHOC spends millions of dollars importing glass bottles hence the revival of the Aboso Glass Factory the management of GIHOC is confident it will go a long way to help save a lot of costs in terms of procuring the raw materials.

“GIHOC will cease from importing glasses and bottles and get them locally produced right here in Ghana as the main source of raw materials to boost the supply chain. There is a huge market potential for the glass bottle industry in West Africa particularly Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and the Ivory Coast,”Afua Foriwaa Boafoh further revealed.

On the part of the MD Mr. Maxwell Kofi Jumah, this is what he had to say:

“It is our expectation to rehabilitate the factory and start actual production within some few months to come.”

Other members of management who accompanied the MD Kofi Jumah included:

Elvis Blankson — Head of Projects, Eugene Otu — Unit Head-Technical, Edith Asamoah — Chief Accountant, Debeck Darkwah Acheampong — Deputy Warehouse and Transport Manager, Afua Foriwaa Boafoh–Media Relations Manager, Hannah Twenewaa—Dep. Sales Manager, Araba Aggrey–Dep. Media Relations Manager, Mark Okyere–General Services, Gythaa Minta — Unit Head- Quality Assurance.

One of the best-performing CEOs, Maxwell Kofi Jumah of state institution GIHOC Distilleries, who has championed a major transformation at the state company, is looking to elevate the Aboso Glass Factory to create jobs and further boost the economic fortunes of the Tarkwa people and Western region at large.

BACKGROUND

On 5th February 1966, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah commissioned the Aboso Glass Factory which cost 9,000,000 Cedis.

The Factory was once a vibrant company that manufactured and supplied Glasses and bottles for the beverage industry in Ghana.

The Glass factory had a yearly output of 18 million bottles, 2 million units of tableware and 8 to 10 million square feet of sheet glass and louvre glass.

Aboso Glass Factory employed about 500 Ghanaians in its early operations.

The Collapse of the factory

However, the Aboso Glass factory has been closed and has not been operating for so many years now due to a lack of machinery, maintenance, and capital.

Despite this, just 19 days after Kwame Nkrumah commissioned the Aboso Glass factory, he was overthrown as president of the Republic of Ghana on February 24, 1966.

From the north to the south across the east to the west of the country, hundreds of factories ranging from cement, steel, roofing sheets, glass, rubber, jute, matches, sugar, paper, and leather to rattan products, were set up under Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.

Today in History, exactly 54 years ago, on 5th February 1966, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah commissioned the Aboso Glass Factory

Nkrumah’s intention was to make Ghana an industrialized country in order to break away from relying too much on imports, therefore, he established factories but 50 years on, all the factories have collapsed due to poor management after his overthrown.