The Komenda Sugar Factory has been left to rot for years
Ghana’s first president and prime minister, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in a bid to achieve a middle to high income status for the country initiated a number of projects to improve lives and generate revenue.
Many of these projects burst unto the scene with the
Read full articlepremise of engaging in domestic production through raw materials and manufacturing which will in turn create value, jobs and open up more export avenues.
While these projects came in the form of factories and other socio-economic amenities, our maintenance culture, saddled with mismanagement and political interference left many of these factories to rot in many parts of the country.
GhanaWeb Business in this article takes a look at some of these factories that could have improved Ghana’s economic status but failed due to an array of challenges.
Komenda Sugar Factory
The Komenda Sugar Factory was first established by Dr Kwame Nkrumah in 1964 to produce sugar from sugar cane. The birth of the factory was based on the idea of producing sugar locally to reduce importation and foreign dependence.
It was set to up to create vast direct and indirect jobs at the time of its full operational capacity but quickly became defunct over the years due to technical difficulties and setbacks.
Though the erstwhile John Mahama administration recommissioned the factory on May 30, 2016, in a bid to get it functioning once again and offer employment for the youth, the move hit a snag as the Akufo-Addo-led government took office shortly in 2017.
The recommissioned Komenda Sugar Factory was expected to create some 7,300 direct and indirect jobs at full operational capacity.
The factory is said to be able to crush 1,250 tonnes of sugar cane daily.
Bonsa Tyre Factory
The Bonsa Tyre Factory is another establishment by Dr Kwame Nkrumah which used to manufacture the popular firestone wheel tyres.
The company in its heyday became a haven for many West African countries who used to purchase the popular firestone wheel tyres.
Prior to its sad collapse, the Bonsa Tyre Factory was strategically sited at Bonsa in Tarkwa, which is near the large rubber plantations where the requisite raw material could easily be tapped to feed the factory.
Over the years, residents of Tarkwa and Bonsa have on numerous occasions called for the re-opening of the company but little has been done on that front.
The GIHOC Fibre Products Company
The GIHOC Fibre Products Company was also established in 1962 by Dr Kwame Nkrumah to manufacture sacks for the export of cocoa beans and other agricultural produce such as maize.
The company was also into the production of shopping bags and money sacks for the carriage of coins by the banks and cocoa purchasing bags.
At the time, it was the only company manufacturing such products and branded as one the best factories in the country until it began to experience challenges in the mid-1980s.
It sadly become defunct and was shut down in 1991.
Wenchi Tomato Factory
Another factory, which was on the verge of helping to transform the company was the Wenchi Tomato Factory.
Dr Kwame Nkrumah established the factory with the aim of addressing wastage during the times of a bumper harvest for tomato. It was also set up to improve tomato production for domestic and export purposes.
The factory’s life span, was however rather short-lived after Dr Kwame Nkrumah was overthrown in 1966. The Wenchi Tomato factory remained closed for many years after the event but was later sold to a private company known as Afriquid Company Limited. It has since been left dormant till date.
The Aboso Glass Factory
The Aboso Glass Factory, was once a vibrant company manufacturing and supplying bottles for the beverage industry.
The company, which was first set up by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah employed hundreds of people from Aboso, Tarkwa and other neighbouring communities but was handed over to the Togolese opposition leader, Mr. Gilcrist Olympio in the early 90s.
Olympio subsequently changed the name of the factory to Tropical Glass Factory and resumed production. Though Olympio's administration, managed to install heavy machinery at the factory to boost production, it could still not live up to expectation due to heavy indebtedness to its creditors.
The company is said to still owe the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) several billion of cedis for power consumed, compelling the latter to disconnect power supply to the company, and therefore aggravating its plight.
The company was however put on the divestiture list in 2003.
Update: An earlier version of this article listed Akosombo Textiles Limited but the company has been removed because new information available to GhanaWeb shows that they resumed operations after they were shut down in 2012.
The Komenda Sugar Factory has been left to rot for years
