'1 District, 1 Factory' without blueprint mere political talk – Ahetor

Plans by Nana Akufo-Addo, flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), to establish a factory in each of the 216 districts across the country if he wins the November polls will be mere political talk if there is no intention to back it with action, Professor John Bright Ahetor, Deputy Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), has stated.

"If it is four years, it is very unrealistic as far as I am concerned. If no idea has gone into it yet, then, it is a very unrealistic, mere political talk. But if ideas have been gathered, people have been contacted, issues have been discussed, and there is a blueprint right now and tomorrow we can start with the sources of funding secured, then I can say, 'Yes, it is doable and realistic,’” he said.

Nana Akufo-Addo made the commitment while touring the Ajumako/Enyan/Essiam, Mfantseman, and Abura/Asebu/Kwamankese constituencies in the Central Region on Saturday, June 18, during day 3 of his 5-day tour of the region, as part of his campaign activities ahead of this year’s election.

According to him, the setting up of these factories across the country will not only commence the rapid industrialisation of Ghana’s economy, but also, result in the creation of hundreds of thousands of jobs needed by the masses of unemployed Ghanaian youth.

For this to happen, Nana Akufo-Addo explained that Ghana’s broken monetary and fiscal systems, currently presided over by the Mahama government, would have to be fixed.

With five months to the November 7 polls, Prof Ahetor holds the opinion that certain critical areas need to be clarified, else the vision will not be possible if it is for a four-year term.

He lauded the initiative by the NPP, but raised concerns about areas he felt needed some attention.

"Would it be a partnership between government and private sector (local or foreign)? Would it be purely a local issue? And we need to know the size – what kind of industry are we talking about? Is it going to be linked to our agricultural base? We need to know the feasibility and how it is going to be done. How much would it cost, where they will be located and so on?” he questioned during an interview with Prince Minkah on Class91.3FM's Executive Breakfast Show, Monday June 20.

He said his concern was also about "the time-frame and whether the factories will be properly managed state enterprises”.

“Was it just political talk or was it thought through economically? We heard about free SHS and the one who proposed it did not even know how much the cost would be. Is it going to be within four years or a strategic, long-term plan for Ghana, which may even go up to 20 years?" he further queried.