GH¢273m disbursed towards 1D1F

The government disbursed GH¢273 million to the 15 participating financial institutions (PFIs) under the One-District, One-Factory (1D1F) programme between 2017 and 2021, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen, has told Parliament.

The amount represented the payment of interest subsidies to the financial institutions to de-risk loans granted to beneficiary 1D1F companies, he explained.

The companies are into agribusiness, pharmaceuticals, food and beverages, textiles, fertiliser, sugar processing, among others.

Disbursed amount

Speaking on the floor of Parliament yesterday, Mr Kyerematen said: “As of December 2021, GH¢156.9 million out of the GH¢273 million had been disbursed by the PFIs to the companies.

The remaining GH¢101.73 million, which is held by 13 PFIs, will be drawn down as and when interest payments associated with the repayment of the loan facilities are due,” he said.

Question

The minister disclosed this when he answered a question on the floor of Parliament by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembelle, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah.

The MP asked how much the government, through the Ministry of Trade and Industry, had disbursed as interest subsidy payments to finance 1D1F companies and projects, the names of beneficiary companies and the amount disbursed as interest subsidy to each company.

Beneficiary PFIs

Responding, Kyerematen mentioned the names of the beneficiary PFIs and the amount each received as GCB (GH¢50.1 million), ECOBANK (GH¢32 million), SG-SSB (GH¢628,728), Universal Merchant Bank (GH¢20 million), ADB (GH¢3.79 million), Prudential Bank (GH¢80.3 million) and Consolidated Bank Ghana (GH¢23.1 million).

The rest are CAL Bank (GH¢6.7 million), Standard Chartered Bank (GH¢6.5 million), ABSA (GH¢7 million), Stanbic Bank (GH¢1.2 million), Republic Bank (GH¢1.5 million), Ghana EXIM (GH¢14.4 million) and Fidelity Bank (GH¢90,000).

Beneficiary companies

He mentioned the beneficiary companies as Agro Africa Limited (GH¢2.3 million), Aspee Pharmaceuticals Limited (GH¢402,572), Birim Oil Mills (GH¢1.17 million), Dannex Ayrton Starwin Plc (GH¢1.7 million), Kaskazini Limited (GH¢1.8 million), Amantin Agro Processing (GH¢3.4 million) and Central Sugar Company Limited (GH¢4.7 million).

Others are Wentech Limited (GH¢1.1 million), Slid Industries Limited (GH¢3 million), Beatex Limited (GH¢2.3 million), Kinapharma Limited (GH¢4.3 million), Yedent Limited (GH¢2.3 million), Obibini Blackman Company Limited (GH¢3.9 million) Akosombo Industrials Company Limited (GH¢4.2 million), Volta Star Textiles Limited (GH¢6.57 million) and Ada Premium Diapers Limited (GH¢2 million).

Besides, KYE Limited received (GH¢3 million), Strongmen Foods and Farms Limited (GH¢3 million), Josma Aglow and Industry Limited (GH¢4 million), Komenda Sugar Development Co. Limited (GH¢23 million), Ameen Sangari Limited (GH¢5.3 million), Ayum Forest Limited (6.5 million) and Western Steel Forging Limited (GH¢10.7 million).

Other forms of support

The minister said in addition, GH¢14.4 million disbursed to the EXIM Bank was used to support other 1D1F 60 companies and projects.

Delays

The Trade Minister also responded to a question on the reasons for the delay by the government to fulfill its promise of assisting pharmaceutical companies to pay the interest on their loans as participants in the 1D1F programme.

He said since the inception of the programme, the government had, through the Ministry of Trade and Industry, to a large extent ensured the timely release of funds as interest subsidies to de-risk loans provided by the PFIs to beneficiary companies, including the pharmaceutical companies.

He said any delays that had occurred in the payment of interest subsidies could be attributed to delays either in the release of funds from the Ministry of Finance or the processing of loan applications of 1D1F companies by PFIs.

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