Kumasi shoe factory is still in operation – Deputy Minister

Deputy Defense Minister, Major Derrick Oduro has debunked reports that the Kumasi shoe factory is been closed down.

According to him, the factory might be facing some challenges at the moment but it has no intention of shutting its operations.

“The problem is we had some inferior raw materials used for shoes which were rejected by our patrons and distributors but we are working tirelessly to get investors to revamp the factory” he noted

He said, the factory if resourced properly will save the country huge sums of money from importing footwear for security agencies.

“The Ghana Army owns 40% of the factory and it was meant to manufacture boots for the Army, immigration, customs, fire services and the police and that is what we want to revamp it to do, the factory has potentials of serving its primary purpose” he added.

Background

The management of the Kumasi Shoe Factory is considering closing the factory over the refusal of the security agencies, particularly the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), to patronize its boots and shoes.

Nothing had changed since November 2017 when the management of the factory came out to lament the effects of the refusal of the state security agencies to patronize their products.

The development had led to the operations of the factory taking a nosedive.

Officially known as the Defense Industries Holding Company Limited (DIHOC) Footwear Division Limited, the factory is jointly owned by the GAF and a Czech Republic-based company Knights a.s., acting through its subsidiary, Knight Ghana Limited.