President John Dramani Mahama has directed a comprehensive audit of the now-defunct Buipe Sheanut Factory, accusing the previous administration of mismanaging funds meant to sustain its operations.
The US$10 million agribusiness facility, established in 2012 through a joint venture between the Government of Ghana and Sysgate Brazil Limited, was designed to add value to sheanut products and create job opportunities in the Savannah region, particularly for women involved in sheanut harvesting.
However, President Mahama alleged that the Nana Addo-led administration, which assumed office in 2016, not only depleted the factory’s capital but also sold off its stock of sheanuts—raw materials that could have been processed to generate revenue.
Speaking during a courtesy call by the Ghana Cocoa, Coffee, and Sheanut Farmers Association (COCOSHE), Mahama stressed the need for accountability and vowed to ensure those responsible for the factory’s collapse face justice.
“The factory was running efficiently, with sufficient capital and raw materials, until the change of government. The new management not only exhausted the available funds but also sold off the stock of sheanuts meant for processing. After spending both the capital and raw materials, there was nothing left, forcing the factory to shut down and lay off workers,” he stated.
Mahama condemned the mismanagement of public resources, emphasizing that if the factory had been privately owned, it would not have suffered such a fate.
“I fully support the call for an audit to uncover those responsible for this financial loss to the state and ensure they are held accountable,” he added.
