Komenda Sugar Factory cannot restart operations in April – Minority

Minority in Parliament have said it is highly unlikely for the Komenda Sugar Factory to be operationalized in April this year.

This comes after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo disclosed that the factory was going to start operations in April this year.

While addressing delegates from the Komenda Traditional Area, the President said the production of sugar will kick start after the completion of some civil works undertaken by an Indian Company.

However, the Minority caucus believes that since government has not made provisions for raw materials, it will be impossible to start operations as scheduled.

Deputy Ranking member on the Trade and Industry Committee, Yusif Sulemana, has charged government to announce publicly where the raw materials for the production of sugar will be generated from.

“I was surprised hearing the President saying that Komenda Sugar Factory will start operation this April. The question I want to ask is, ‘start operation with what?’ I was there when we were told that there was no raw material so that they couldn’t process,” he said.

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.

The sugar-producing factory was first established in 1964 but became defunct over the years due to technical difficulties and setbacks.

The birth of the factory was based on the premise of producing sugar locally to reduce importation but that is yet to yield results in recent times.