Head of Communications at the Presidency Ben Dotsei Malor has disclosed that neighbouring countries have placed orders for shoes from the Defence Industrial Holding Company Limited (DIHOC), which manages the Kumasi Shoe Factory.

This comes after President John Dramani Mahama also promised over the weekend that the factory will produce sandals to be distributed free of charge to school children in deprived communities in Ghana.

The factory, under the Ministry of Defence, currently produces footwear for the Ghana Armed Forces.

“This is a positive story of work and happiness and even now we are getting demands from neighbouring countries,” Mr Malor said on TV3’s Midday Live on Monday, May 5.

He said the factory is more than ready to produce for other security agencies as it dovetails into the president’s call for patronage of ‘Made in Ghana’ products.

The factory, established in 1960 by Ghana’s first President Dr Kwame Nkrumah, collapsed in the 1970s only to be revived in 2009.

“The focus of the president was how this dead situation has been brought back to life,” Mr Malor remarked on President Mahama’s visit to the factory over the weekend.

“We should acknowledge where we are coming from, they need to supported, and they need to be encouraged,” he said.