I will revive Komenda Sugar Factory within 16 months if given the mandate – John Dumelo
If you give the chance I will revive Komenda Sugar Factory in 16 months
Ghanaian actor and agriculture-entrepreneur, John Dumelo has taken to social media to express his concerns and readiness to revive the Komenda Sugar Factory if given the opportunity.
Mr Dumelo was the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Candidate for Ayawaso West Wuoguon in the last general elections. He lost narrowly to the incumbent MP, Lydia Alhassan in that election. His assertion came after a publication by JoyNews on the issue titled “Komenda Sugar Factory: A rusting investment.”
This was what John had to say “I can revive the Komenda sugar factory if given the mandate. That factory will start producing sugar within 16 months (Considering planting and harvesting of sugarcane). The factory needs about 200,000 tons of sugarcane(pa) to operate at full capacity. We can do it!”
The Komenda Sugar factory was built in 1964 and has since remained defunct as a result of mismanagement cum technological intricacies.
As argued by the actor-tuned politician, the variety of sugarcane is a great concern though, but that would not overpower the capacity of the factory that has a 180 operational day cycle.
“Depending on the variety of sugarcane, the KSF will require raw materials from over 5000 hectares of land to fully operate at a 180-day operational cycle. This is where comprehensive out-grower schemes and agronomic management practices can be implemented. We can do it.” He assured Ghanaians.
The factory was commissioned by the former president John Dramani Mahama in May 2016 after some works were done on it to meet modern specifications and production needs. The aim was to produce sugar for domestic use and export as well as creating 7,300 jobs and saving the country from spending millions of dollars importing sugar.
By: Elisha Aberiganya | Follow us on Twitter @activtvgh
