Deputy Ministers – Ahomka Lindsay and Henry Quartey inspecting the factory
A tissue paper manufacturing factory has been commissioned at the Nsawam Prisons under the government’s ‘One District, One Factory’ policy.
The facility falls under the Nsawam/Adoagyiri Municipality of the Eastern Region.
Dubbed, ‘Project Efiase’ and under the management of Brompton Portfolio Limited, the factory would produce toilet rolls, tissue paper, paper towels and packaging products.
The facility is intended to provide additional source of income to the Ghana Prisons Service and the prison in particular.
Such income, DAILY GUIDE gathered, would be used to improve the conditions of inmates and empower them with employable skills as part of the reformation process.
The Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Robert Ahomka-Lindsey, who commissioned the project, remarked that the private sector as the engine of growth can count on government support, so it can make important contribution towards national development.
The commissioning of the factory, he said, is evidence of government’s commitment to empowering the private sector to flourish.
He charged Ghanaians to have confidence in themselves and believe that since others have been able to industrialise, they too can do so.
Thirty percent of the tax garnered from the factory, he said, would be used to support the Nsawam Prisons.
The National Coordinator of the 1D1F, Gifty Konadu, who spoke at the commissioning, said the inmates would be able to earn stipends which they can use to support their families while in custody or save to look after themselves when they leave prison.
She added that “apart from enabling inmates and the Prisons Service to gain sustainable incomes the acquisition of technical and entrepreneurial knowledge will greatly shape the future of those, who would be engaged directly as factory hands in the production process.”
The high suicide rate among inmates and ex-convicts, she said, can be reduced when such persons are encouraged to engage in productive ventures and exercise their minds in one way or the other to regain self-confidence.
James Yankah, Managing Director of Brompton Portfolio Limited, on his part, said, “The partnership between Brompton Portfolio and Ghana Prisons Service would enhance the prison work programme to make it easy for inmates to find jobs upon their release.”
According to him, “It has been proven over time that inmates who are given the opportunity to engage in prison work programmes while incarcerated find it easy to find work once they are released.
He explained that the benefits of prison work programmes go deeper than just job training, adding that the programme would offer an opportunity for inmates to develop necessary skills such as punctuality, responsibility, deadlines and accountability.
The company has acquired modern machinery and equipment with the capacity to produce over 160,000 packs of tissue papers and toilet rolls per month.
The toilet rolls and tissue papers are traded under the brand name *SOFTEX*, which are also suitable for both domestic and industrial purposes.
The total project cost is estimated at GH¢4 million with financing provided by NIB and Ghana Commercial Bank Limited through the facilitation of the ‘One District, One Factory’ (1D1F) programme.
The company has successfully received certification from the Ghana Standards Authority, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ghana Free Zones Authority.
One hundred and five inmates at the prison and 5,500 sale distributors would be employed under the programme.
From Daniel Bampoe, Nsawam