By Iddi Yire,
Tema, Sept. 15, GNA – President John Dramani Mahama has commissioned Phase III of Zonda Tech Ghana Limited’s Automobile Assembly Plant in Tema, describing the expansion as an important milestone in the company’s development.
The plant has so far provided jobs for more than 800 Ghanaians.
President Mahama said the wider Tema industrial enclave had, in recent months, witnessed several sod-cutting ceremonies and commissioning of new industrial facilities.
He said that over the past 18 months, he had visited the enclave at least seven times to commission new factories.
The President said the commissioning marked another important milestone in Ghana’s industrial journey and reaffirmed the conviction that sustainable prosperity would not come from importing everything the country consumed, but from producing what it used and exporting what it made.
He said facilities such as the Zonda Tech plant were tangible evidence of national progress, representing confidence in the economy, faith in the abilities of Ghanaians and a commitment to creating decent jobs for present and future generations.
President Mahama said every new manufacturing investment also honoured the vision of Ghana’s forebears, particularly Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, who believed that the country’s political independence would be meaningful only if underpinned by industrial self-reliance.
“Today, we continue to pursue that vision. Zonda Tech’s growth is itself a remarkable Ghanaian success story. From what was a humble beginning, Madam Yang Yang began as a vehicle distributor in 2010,” he said.
He noted that the company had steadily transformed into Ghana’s leading assembler of heavy-duty vehicles, SUVs and small cars, while also assembling passenger vehicles, sports utility vehicles and light trucks from several leading Chinese brands.
He said through determination, strategic partnerships and continuous investment, Zonda Tech now operated one of the most modern vehicle assembly facilities in the West African sub-region.
“This expansion we are commissioning today increases the production capacity of Zonda Tech to approximately 3,000 heavy and light-duty vehicles, including tipper trucks, cargo trucks, trailers, semi-trailers and tankers,” he said.
The President said Ghana’s ambition to become the automotive manufacturing hub of West Africa was deliberate, strategic and achievable.
He said the Ghana Automobile Development Policy had already attracted globally recognised brands, including Volkswagen, Toyota, Nissan, Hyundai, Honda and Kia, among others, while creating space for strong indigenous manufacturers such as Kantanka.
“Assembling, however, cannot be our final destination. Our goal is to develop an integrated automotive industry in which locally produced materials and components feed directly into vehicle manufacturers,” he said.
He said the next phase of the country’s industrial strategy was to deepen value addition by promoting the local manufacture of automotive components, including batteries, tyres, wiring harnesses, seats, glass, plastics and metal parts.
President Mahama said this would create stronger linkages between large manufacturers and Ghanaian small and medium-sized enterprises.
He therefore urged Zonda Tech Ghana Limited to identify and invest in the local production of some components, saying this would strengthen domestic supply chains, retain more value in the economy, create additional jobs for Ghanaians and position the company as a leader in electric mobility.
He said with strategic minerals, including lithium, and the country’s growing renewable energy capacity, Ghana could develop an integrated battery and electric vehicle value chain serving both domestic and continental markets.
“Our vision is from minerals to batteries, from batteries to vehicles, from vehicles to exports, all proudly made in Ghana,” he said.
On electric vehicles (EVs) and the EV Policy, President Mahama said the Ministry of Energy and Green Transitions was developing an EV Policy, with particular attention to charging stations.
“A few people have started establishing charging stations. If this is not regulated, it could lead to imbalances in our energy systems because if we put too many charging stations in one place without taking note of the transformer and the substations that serve those charging stations, it can imbalance the electricity supply in that area,” he stated.
The President said the Government also wanted to promote solar charging, stating that “the sunlight is free of charge, and so we want to promote the use of solar for charging.”
President Mahama commended Zonda Tech Ghana Limited for establishing the Zonda Tech Academy, an automotive training institution providing practical technical and vocational skills to Ghanaians.
Madam Yang Yang, Chief Executive of Zonda Tech Ghana Limited, said the plant represented more than vehicles, describing it as a demonstration of the company’s long-term commitment to Ghana.
GNA
Edited by Audrey Dekalu