Dr Peter Boamah Otokunor, the Director in charge of Presiden­tial Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness (PIAA) at the Office of the President, made this known when he visited the factory to assess the state of the factory here in Buipe on Friday.

He said the government was committed to rural agribusiness development as a pathway to industrialisation and job creation, adding “The revamping of the factory is a right way to set the 24- hour economy agenda.”

He stated that the revamping of the factory was dear to the heart of the President.

This, he said would add up to creating jobs, building local ca­pacity and adding real value to the agricultural resources and the shea value chain in the country.

He added that the kick-start of the factory would again transform the economy and showcase the critical role of the shea industry in northern ecological zone.

According to him, he was direct­ed by the President as part of his working visit to assess the state of the shea factory in Buipe.

“Today, I have come here to see the state of the shea factory and how we can work around it to start operation as soon as possible.”

He stated that the bouncing back of the factory to full oper­ational capacity would serve the people of the Buipe enclave, and most importantly for the women who pick the shea nuts from the forest areas.

Dr Otokunor also said in his assessment after going around the factory that he believed that a very great disservice has been done to the people of Buipe by allowing all-important strategic assets to lie fallow and go rotten.

He further added that he had done some assessment and seen the critical challenges of the factory and believe they could put in place good measures to help the factory to be revived.

The Director stated that the majority shares in the factory was being held by PBC, a state compa­ny, hence the need for them to put it back to operation.

He said the biggest challenge of the factory now was the supply chain management and the sourc­ing of the raw materials.

Dr Otokunor also assured that he would submit the report to the President for urgent action to be taken to revamp the factory.