Automobile giants, Hyundai and KIA are set to establish assembly plants in Ghana, a move that comes less than a month after social media firm, Twitter announced that its African base will be located in the country.
Ghana’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen announced this on Thursday, noting that the plants will be ready by the end of 2022.
The move is a product of the Ghana Automotive Development Programme orchestrated by the Ghanaian government in partnership with some players in the industry, a development Kyerematen noted will see other automobile firms setting up assembly plants in the country.
“Pleased to announce that Hyundai & KIA are set to establish assembly plants in Ghana by the end of 2022 to join Toyota-Suzuki, Nissan, Kantanka, Volkswagen & Sinotruck,” the minister tweeted on his official handle. “The Ghana Auto Development programme = 3,600 assembly & 6,600 manufacturing parts jobs in Ghana.”
Earlier in the day, the Trade and Industry Ministry signed a deal with the ‘Invest for Jobs’ (an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) to promote Ghana’s automotive industry and back the building of industrial parks.
The event which was co-hosted by the German Ambassador to Ghana, Christoph Retzlaff and Kyerematen, signalled the cooperation between both nations.
“For the purpose of this cooperation with the Ministry, an amount of 540,000 Euros is being invested – through a financing agreement, to support industrial park development and to establish an Automotive Desk at the Ministry,” the ministry posted on its official Facebook page.
It added that through “the local assembly of vehicles, 3,600 direct and indirect jobs would be created in Ghana, and the addition of components and parts manufacturing will also add about 6,600 direct and indirect jobs.”
