Mr Anselm Ray Sowah, the Managing Director, GCB Bank, said the Bank’s vision for businesses, which would operate under the initiative in any district, would be to form a complex network and entrepreneurship ecosystem from suppliers including out growers, transporters, warehouse and other service providers.

He said it was important that the support for this initiative was both holistic across the entire value chain for both large and small businesses.

He also announced that GCB Bank would bear the full cost of the consultant services of the project.  Mr Sowah made the disclosure on Monday in Accra at the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce (GNCC) forum on the One-District, One-Factory policy.

The day’s forum was on the theme: “Leveraging on the ‘One-District, One-factory’ Policy for Private Sector Growth.” It brought together policy makers, financiers, industry practitioners, insurance companies and other relevant stakeholders to share their perspectives on the policy, implementation plans, financing options, need for value chain mapping, diagnosis and risk management. He said Ghana was endowed with natural resources, which when enhanced, would catapult the development of each area through infrastructure development, job and wealth creation and social achievement.

“If Ghana can feed foreign industries with its raw materials only for us to import them as value added product at exorbitant prices and the drain on our foreign exchange reserves; then why should we as a people not invest with requisite machinery, human capital and other resources to process these raw materials for local consumption and export,” he asked.

“This is what our leaders had in mind when GCB Bank was formed some 64 years ago,” Mr Sowah added. He said the Bank had always provided financial support for national development and this explained why GCB operated branches in areas whereas others were unwilling or unable to go.

He said with the 161 branches across the country and with its presence in every region and most districts, GCB Bank supports the One-District, One-Factory project.  He noted that GCB Bank had designed a special package for customers operating under this initiative and these include the creation of a dedicated unit, partnering a number of respected consultants to provide the needed advisory services to make business proposals from prospective investors bankable. He said this was critical if this initiative was to become successful; adding that GCB Bank was the lead bank in small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) financing.

The Minister of Trade and Industry (MoTI), Mr Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen announced that the One-District, One-Factory initiative was receiving very enthusiastic response from the business and investor community both local and international.

  He said the project had the potential of transforming the industrial landscape of Ghana, and would contribute significantly to the socioeconomic development agenda of the country.

He said as at Friday, May 19, the Ministry had received more than 150 proposals including business plans, feasibility studies and expression of interest from various parts of the country and covering varied economic interests, even though the programme had not been formally launched.

He, however, noted that the One-District, One-Factor initiative would be launched at the next National Policy Summit scheduled for June, with subsequent roll out stakeholder engagements and mini launches in each district.

He also announced that individuals or group of individuals interested in participating in the programme were invited to submit an Expression of Interest in writing addressed to the Chief Director, MoTI (onedonef@moti.gv.gh) or to the District Chief Executive for the district in which a proposed project was to be located.

Nana Dr Appiagyei Dankawoso I, the President, GNCC, called on all and sundry to strive to make the One-District, One-Factory policy successful in order to improve the socioeconomic development of the country.

Dr Samuel Frimpong Boateng, the Financial Risk and Industry Value Chain Analyst, AFRIDEG, in his presentation on the topic “Developing and Managing Industrial Value Chain”, called for value chain approach to ensure the success of the project.