1D1F Grabs US$237m

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Wednesday announced that US$237 million had so far been disbursed to 16 companies under the One District, One Factory (1D1F) Initiative, while additional five companies are being considered for support to boost the country’s industrialisation drive.

Systematically, he said, government was rolling out the 1D1F industrialisation programme, with 79 projects so far being implemented, while 134 projects were undergoing credit appraisal from officials of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

President Akufo-Addo announced this when he met a cross-section of the media at the Jubilee House, the Seat of Government, in Accra, on Wednesday, to render account of his 23 months stewardship.

Touching on health, President Akufo-Addo said government had paid GHc1.2 billion arrears inherited from the previous administration for the operations of the National Health Insurance Scheme.

He said the country was in the process of securing most advanced medical drones for distribution of blood and other essential medicines to hard-to-reach areas across the country.

He said four operational centres would be created, which would distribute 148 life-saving and essential medical supplies, noting that, it would save lives, decrease waste in the system and have access to more than 140 million people nationwide and also employ over 200 Ghanaians.

The programme, he said, would not be run on public purse because corporate entities would fund it through their corporate social obligation.

‘‘I prefer drones delivering blood and essential medicines to our people than investment in guinea fowls,’’ the President added.

President Akufo-Addo also vowed not to give up on the fight to stop illegal mining to help safeguard the environment.

The ban on the illegal activity was in full force – had not and was not going to be lifted.

President Akufo-Addo therefore invited everybody to join the effort at protecting the vegetation, rivers and water bodies.

He said the decision by the government to disallow small scale mining was never to be permanent.

He added that it was meant to allow for the streamlining of things to restore sanity.

The recent announced permission that licensed small scale miners could go back to their job should not be construed as green light to anybody to engage in illegal mining.

President Akufo-Addo also made reference to upcoming referendum on the creation of new regions, and said it was going to be the first test for the newly appointed Chairperson and Commissioners of the election management body – the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct a free, fair and transparent election.

He reminded everybody that there “cannot be any excuse for violence”.

What the people in the proposed new regions were seeking to do was to bring about equitable development.