The Defense Industry Holding Company; a shoe Factory owned by the Ghana Armed Forces will soon begin the manufacturing of shoes for school children in Ghana.
This was revealed by President John Mahama during a familiarization tour to the factory in Kumasi as part of his three-day working visit to the Ashanti Region.
The President said the shoes will be distributed for free to all school going children in the country.
He has subsequently directed the Education Ministry, the Trade and Industry Ministry and the Local Government Ministry to ensure the programme commences soon.
The President explained that since government is already supplying school uniforms to school children in deprived districts, the three Ministries have been instructed “to come together so that we can make school sandals and footwear o accompany the school uniforms.”
He called for the expansion of the shoe factory to meet the production targets which will also create employment opportunities for residents in the region.
The President stated that the re-opening of the shoe factory is indicative that “things are working, things are getting better and that Ghana is making progress.”
He appealed to Ghanaians to keep hope alive because Ghana “is blessed and it’s making progress and its going to make more progress…and we shall see that God’s hand is truly on Ghana.”
President Mahama has also expressed his satisfaction at the work of the Defense Industry holding Company, which has the primary mandate of manufacturing boots for personnel in the various security services.
“We are now able to produce our won boots for our security services. The Armed Forces of Ghana are having all their boots manufactured here and the Immigration Service has also placed an order for their boots.”
According to him, when products are locally manufactured in Ghana and patronized, “we will be able to provide jobs for our young people.”
The Defence Industries Holding Company Limited (DIHOC) Footwear Division Limited, formerly, the Ghana Industrial Holding (GIHOC) Footwear Company Limited, was established in 1960.
The company collapsed in the late 1970s. It was however resuscitated last year, following a joint partnership between a Czech Republic-based company, Knights as, acting through its subsidiary, Knight Ghana Limited, and the Defence Industries Holding Company Limited (DIHOC), owned by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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