The Rural Enterprises Programme (REP) of the Ministry of Trade and Industry has completed the construction of a rice processing Common User Facility (CUF) in Savelugu in the Northern Region of Ghana.
The 1.5 to 2.8 tonnes per hour factory was funded by the African Development Bank through REP and is expected to be owned by rice based Farmer Based Organised (FBOs) and other primary value chain actors.
The Savelugu rice CUF is the third facility to be completed out of the five (5) medium- scale Common User Facilities (CUFs) being established by REP, in line with the Government of Ghana’s One-District One-Factory initiative. The other completed CUFs (both rice) are located in Nkran Nkwanta in Bono Region and Sefwi Akontombra in the Western North Region. The Oil Palm processing CUF in Dompim (Tarkwa Nsuaem) in the Western Region and Maize Processing CUF in Nsuta (Sekyere Central) in the Ashanti Region are also almost complete.
Consultant for the project, Tony Asare of Tekton Consult, handed over the factory to the National Director of REP, Kwasi Attah-Antwi, at a short handing over ceremony in Savelugu. Present at the ceremony were the Municipal Chief Executive for Savelugu, Hon. Hajia Ayishetu Seidu, some key management members of the Assembly, Assembly Members and some staff of REP and the Savelugu Business Advisory Centre.
Mr Attah-Antwi explained that the Akontombra Rice CUF, when commissioned will be owned and managed by the rice farmers and farmer groups in and around Savelugu. He mentioned that a date will be fixed for the commissioning of the facility to kick-start operations.
Hon. Hajia Ayishetu Seidu mentioned that the Yoo Rice Processing Company, has been incorporated to man the factory and urged all rice farmers in the district to embrace the initiative to ensure its success.
The equipment installed at the factory will be used for milling of paddy rice, cleaning, sorting/grading and packaging of rice. Unlike the other rice processing CUFs in Nkran Nkwanta and Sefwi Akontombra, the Savelugu CUF has an added parboiling equipment installed.
In addition to the 5 CUF, REP is also establishing 58 small scale 1D1F ENABLE Youth factories nationwide, which will be owned by young graduates. These are being financed by the African Development Bank and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
