Overall, a total of 232 projects have been initiated under the 1D1F initiative. Out of these, 76 projects have been completed and are already operational, while the remaining 156, including five medium-size agro-processing factories are currently under construction.

“Twelve of these companies received approval for import duty exemptions to the tune of GH¢34million. A total of 154 districts out of the 260 districts are benefiting from the programme”, Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, revealed during the 2020 Mid-year budget review last Thursday.

In addition, construction of 36 small-scale processing factories out the total 58 projects under the Enable Youth One District One Factory (1D1F) initiative will begin in August this year in 36 districts across the country.

Plans are underway to begin construction of the entire projects – being jointly financed by Ghana and the African Development Bank (AfDB) – in the next six months with an amount of US$200,000 earmarked for each of the 56 projects.

These processing facilities will be owned by youth groups in all the districts who will be trained to manage and maintain them. This is expected to ensure that the youth are made part of the 1D1F programme.

However, with regards to IDIF factories currently under construction, completion schedules have largely been affected by the impacts of the Coronavirus pandemic that has seriously disrupted global trade and investment activities.

Meanwhile, efforts have commenced to identify strategic investors to partner Government in its 1D1F Initiative by establishing factories in the districts that lack active business promoters.

Government claims that it has already provided resources to support business promoters to establish 1D1F projects in some districts which failed to attract investment on commercial terms under the programme.

Importantly, the Coronavirus pandemic has presented new opportunities for 1D1F- supported companies in various sub-sectors of industry, including, garments and textiles enterprises that would engage in the production of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs); as well as for producers of processed foods, fruit juices, pharmaceuticals among others.

Travel restrictions and disruption of global supply chains created by the Coronavirus pandemic have reinforced the need for Ghana to build local productive capacity for import substitution in line with Government’s industrialization drive.