Akufo-Addo Commissions Processing Factory At Kwaso

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Thursday, June 17, commissioned Premium Foods Limited, an agricultural processing factory under the government’s One-District-One-Factory (1D1F) initiative. 

The state-of-the-art manufacturing facility has the capacity to blend over 96,000 metric tonnes of maize, soybean, sorghum and millet, annually.

It is one of the few manufacturing factories with such capabilities in West Africa.

The factory was unveiled at Kwaso in the Ejisu Municipality of the Ashanti Region.

Premium Foods would create about 120 new jobs made up of technical and management professionals.

It would also create thousands of indirect income-earning opportunities for farmers and out-growers along the value chain, mostly women and youth.

In his remarks, President Akufo-Addo explained that the establishment of the factory is a manifestation of the new paradigm of economic development in the country.

This shift in economic development focuses on value-addition in industrial activities within a conducive and business-friendly environment.

The President said the establishment of the firm was in fulfilment of the promise by the government to partner with the private sector to set up at least one medium to large scale enterprise in every district of Ghana.

“The contribution of Premium Foods Limited highlights Ghanaian ingenuity, entrepreneurial spirit, as well as the fortitude to succeed no matter the challenge,” President Akufo-Addo said.

Over the years, Premium Foods has supplied blended fortified and non-fortified products and ingredients to global organisations.

This includes international relief organisations and multinational food and beverage manufacturing companies across Africa, such as the “Feed the Future” programme, under the US government’s Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative.

The President reiterated the government’s support to the private sector operators to become globally competitive.

“Prospective companies desirous of establishing such ventures, under the 1D1F initiative, are assured of Government’s unwavering support, and I appeal to them to join hands with Government in the journey to industrialise Mother Ghana and help create jobs for Ghanaian youth in all parts of the country,” he said.

By so doing, they would be able to take advantage of market integration frameworks such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which has its Secretariat in Ghana.

“To this end, Government, as at December 2020, has granted import duty exemptions to thirty-six (36) companies, under the 1D1F programme, amounting to some GH¢435 million,” he revealed.

The President further stated that some sectors have benefited from the exemptions, including agro-processing, ceramics manufacturing, hardware manufacturing, and vehicle assembly plants.

READ ALSO: Let’s Ensure The Success Of 1D1F Initiative – Akufo-Addo

He commended the collaboration between local and foreign institutions to provide technical and financial support to this project.

They are the World Food Programme (WFP), the Canadian High Commission in Ghana, and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The rest are the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), Department for International Development (DFID), the J. A Kufuor Foundation.