By Alex Baah Boadi
Sefwi-Bokaso (WN/R), Jan. 23, GNA – Nana Kwaku Ennin II, Chief of Bokaso in the Western North Region, has appealed to the government and the Trade Ministry to ensure the operations of the Akontombra rice processing factory which was commissioned some two years ago.
The 6.7 million cedis factory situated at Bokaso is yet to be operationalized, after its commissioning by the President in September 2021.
The factory, established under the One -district One Factory initiative, has the capacity to process between 1.5 and 2.8 tonnes of rice per hour.
The factory, which would be operated under the Common User Facility (CUF), an agro industry factory established by the Rural Enterprise Programme under the Ministry of Trade and Industry would create jobs for more than 118 people.
At the commissioning of the factory, it was made known that it would directly employ about 118 people, including management, professionals, and factory floor workers and that more than 600 farmers from the area would also be directly engaged to supply paddy rice for processing.
Nana Kwaku Ennin II expressed worry about the factory’s inability to operate over two years after its commissioning, noting that the facility would have helped create employment opportunities for farmers and the teaming youth in the area.
“I accepted this project wholeheartedly thinking it would help create employment in the area, but the outcome is not the best.”
A visit to the factory by the Ghana News Agency revealed that the main entrance to the factory was locked with two tractor machines packed on the compound with overgrown weeds all over the facility.
GNA