Daasebre Akuamoah Agyapong II, the Board Chairman of the Agricultural Development Bank Limited (ADB), has reiterated the commitment of the Bank to support agribusiness sector to contribute to the Ghanaian economy.
The Board Chairman made this statement during a visit with Management of the bank to the Ghana Oil Palm Development Company (GOPDC) in Kwae-Kade in the Eastern region of Ghana to familiarize with the operations of the Company. He noted with certainty that the Bank would continue to focus on its core mandate of agricultural financing to ensure that the sector continues to be the driving force for the growth of the Ghanaian economy.
“We will continue to provide financial support to companies and industries, especially in the agribusiness sector to ensure food security and better economic growth.”
Daasebre Akuamoah Agyapong II
Nana Daasebre Akuamoah Agyapong II averred that ADB would in 2022 continue with its strategy of disbursing more loans to Companies and Individuals within the agribusiness value chain to consolidate the positive contribution of the agricultural sector to the Ghanaian economy.
The ADB Managing Director, Dr. John Kofi Mensah, consequently applauded the company for its Out-grower Scheme which has helped in creating thousands of jobs for people within the catchment area of the company.
“I wish to commend the GOPDC Company for its Out-grower Scheme, which positively helped in creating jobs for the good people of Kwae-Kade and its environs”.
Daasebre Akuamoah Agyapong II
Dr. John Kofi Mensah assured the Company of the Bank’s support in expanding its operations to create more jobs and more products to meet both local demand and for export.
The Managing Director of GOPDC, Mr. Gangadhar Shetty, on the other hand, commended ADB for its continuous support to the Agricultural sector over the years.
“We have enjoyed financial support from ADB over the years and this has positively impacted our growth as a company.”
Mr. Gangadhar Shetty
According to the Managing Director, GOPDC is working to meet the demands of the local market to help reduce the importation of oil onto the Ghanaian market.
Mr. Shetty thus, assured the Board and Management of the Bank that all financial support given would be used for its intended purposes to positively impact the Ghanaian economy.
“We hope to increase our production capacity in the coming years to meet the demands of the local market and help government in its fight against inflation”.
Mr. Gangadhar Shetty
Explaining the overview of the company, the Managing Director of GOPDC asserted that GOPDC, which formerly belonged to the State, is now a member of the Siat Group of Belgium. He noted that the company specialized in the cultivation of oil palm, extraction of crude palm oil and palm kernel oil and produces refined specialty oils for use by the food industry.
Mr. Shetty disclosed that the Company has about 21,000 hectares of oil palm plantations, of which about 13,000 ha have been developed for about 6,000 Outgrowers.
“In total, there are over 1,860,000 oil palm trees spread over a radius of 30 km, creating a direct or indirect income for above 50,000 people.”
Mr. Gangadhar Shetty
The visit formed part of the ADB Board and Management strategy to interact with key customers of the Bank and have a first-hand assessment on operations of companies the Bank has disbursed loan facilities to over the period.
The Company is currently the producers of the Kings brand of vegetable Oil on the Ghanaian Market.
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