South African investors commit $100m for sugar production

Accra, Sept.27 GNA- A team of South African investors, had committed 100 million dollars, to the large scale production of sugar cane in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions, after concluding feasibility studies for the establishment of a sugar factory in Ghana.

The team had submitted a business plan to the Government, which would be subjected to further negotiations, to clench a good deal for the country, Hajia Alima Mahama, Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and the President's Special Initiative (PSI), told the Ghana News Agency in an Interview on Monday.

" The weather pattern and all other studies to ensure a viable sugar cane production have been concluded and we are sure of a good deal," she said, while emphasising the need for a good business plan to meet the interests of Ghana and the entrepreneurs.

Hajia Mahama dispelled public notion that the PSI was not far reaching in the three northern regions.

She listed the cotton industry, garments, craft production, starch, groundnuts and sorghum as areas receiving massive capital investment for the commencement of the Initiative.

She said the PSI on Cassava would cover West Gonja, East Gonja, Central Gonja Nanumba, Tolon /Kumbungu districts and Tamale Metropolis in the Northern Region.

" Farmers are being mobilised to be supplied with high yielding planting materials to start the programme before the end of 2004. The Ministry is also syndicating finance for the processing machines, since PSI is all about processing."

Hajia Mahama said technically all the 10 regions could benefit from the PSI on garments, since entrepreneurs can locate at any place of their choice.

" People are however looking at the coastal areas, especially because they want to avail themselves of the of the business opportunities under the US initiated Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA)."

On Cotton the Deputy Minister said a US strategic investor had shown interest in the Tamale-based Ghana Cotton Company Limited and was negotiating with the Agriculture Development Bank for a take over, to facilitate the re-organisation of the Company.

Hajia Mahama said the Government was negotiating with the HSBC financial institution and other donors for the commencement of a 20 million- dollar business plan for a PSI on groundnut and groundnut oil extraction in all the districts assemblies in the three regions. She said it would take about a year to fabricate and install the equipment for the project expected to turn out 50,000 tonnes of groundnuts per annum.

Hajia Mahama said the beneficiary farmers would be organised into a Cooperate Village Enterprise (COVE) to ensure the success of the venture.

She said her sector ministry was also collaborating with the United Nations Development Programme, the Food Research Institute, the Savannah Agriculture Research Institute, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the country's major brewery companies to develop the "capala" variety of sorghum, as an ingredient for their products especially beer and malt. Hajia Mahama said Government had invested 1.5 billion cedis from the benefits of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, for the construction of a Craft Centre in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region, as part of the national Craft Initiative, to ensure an accelerated craft development for export.

She explained that craft production was a means of livelihood for two million people in Morocco and contributes 19 per cent of that country's Gross Domestic Product.

Hajia Mahama said the PSI had been formulated to ensure that the beneficiaries became the shareholders of all the ventures, in line with the "property owning democracy policy of the ruling New Patriotic Party".

She said sheabutter processing which is one of the major pre occupation of the three regions was been developed as one of the major income earning product, under the government's Rural Enterprise Development Programme (REDP).

Hajia Mahama appealed to the people to endeavour to develop the needed human capacity to take advantage of the development packages to ensure rapid socio-economic development. Northerners, she said must take up jobs at home and utilise the available capital that goes with it judiciously.