President John Dramani Mahama has commissioned Phase Three of the Zonda Tech Ghana Limited Vehicle Assembly Plant at the Tema industrial enclave, describing the expansion as a significant milestone in Ghana’s drive towards industrial self-reliance and economic transformation.
Speaking at the commissioning ceremony, President Mahama said the rapid growth of industrial activity within the Tema enclave was evidence that Ghana’s manufacturing sector was gaining momentum.
“Within the past few months this part of the wider Tema industrial enclave has been bustling with sod-cutting ceremonies and commissioning of new industrial facilities,” he said.
The President noted that he had visited the area at least seven times within the past 18 months to commission new factories.
He said the expansion of Zonda Tech’s facility reinforces the government’s conviction that sustainable prosperity would not come from importing everything Ghana consumes but from producing locally and exporting Ghanaian-made products.
“Today’s commissioning marks another important milestone in Ghana’s industrial journey,” President Mahama stated.
According to him, modern manufacturing facilities represent confidence in Ghana’s economy, the capabilities of its people and the country’s commitment to creating decent employment opportunities for present and future generations.
President Mahama also linked Zonda Tech’s achievement to the industrial vision of Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, who advocated industrial self-reliance as a foundation for meaningful political independence.
Zonda Tech expands production capacity
President Mahama commended Zonda Tech founder Madam Yang Yang for transforming the company from a vehicle distributor established in 2010 into one of Ghana’s leading vehicle assembly companies.
He said the company now assembles heavy-duty vehicles, SUVs, passenger vehicles and light trucks from several leading Chinese brands.
Through strategic partnerships and sustained investment, he said, Zonda Tech had developed one of the modern vehicle assembly facilities in the West African sub-region.
The newly commissioned expansion increases the company’s annual production capacity to approximately 3,000 heavy and light-duty vehicles.
President Mahama further cited Zonda Tech’s recent Auto Sales Expo in Accra, which brought prospective vehicle buyers together with financial institutions and offered flexible financing arrangements.
He also disclosed that Gabonese President Brice Oligui Nguema visited the facility about six weeks earlier and was impressed by Ghana’s growing automotive manufacturing capabilities.
According to President Mahama, the Gabonese leader even encouraged Madam Yang Yang to establish a similar plant in Gabon.
“She politely declined. She said, ‘Ghana is my home, and if you want vehicles, I will export them from Ghana to you,’” President Mahama recounted.
Ghana targets automotive manufacturing hub status
President Mahama said Ghana’s ambition to become the automotive manufacturing hub of West Africa was “deliberate, strategic and achievable.”
He pointed to the Ghana Automotive Development Policy, which has attracted international brands including Volkswagen, Toyota, Nissan, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Great Wall Motors, GLE, Chery, Forland and Peugeot, while also creating opportunities for indigenous manufacturers such as Kantanka.
However, he stressed that vehicle assembly should not be the final destination.
“Our goal is to develop an integrated automotive industry in which locally produced materials and components feed directly into vehicle manufacturing,” he said.
The President said government’s next phase of industrial policy would focus on increasing local production of batteries, tyres, wiring harnesses, seats, glass, plastics and metal components.
He urged Zonda Tech to identify components it could manufacture locally, arguing that deeper localisation would strengthen domestic supply chains, retain more value in Ghana and create additional employment.
Government eyes electric vehicle industry
President Mahama also announced plans to position Ghana as a leader in electric mobility, leveraging the country’s strategic minerals, including lithium, and its growing renewable energy capacity.
He outlined a long-term vision stretching from mineral extraction to battery production, vehicle manufacturing and exports.
“Our vision is clear: from minerals to batteries, from batteries to vehicles, from vehicles to exports, all proudly made in Ghana.”
He said the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition was developing an electric vehicle policy, particularly around charging infrastructure.
The government, he explained, wanted clear regulations to ensure that the expansion of charging stations did not create imbalances in Ghana’s electricity system.
He also advocated solar-powered charging stations, noting that Ghana could take advantage of its abundant sunshine.
Mahama calls for vehicle financing
President Mahama said local vehicle assembly must be accompanied by accessible financing mechanisms to enable ordinary Ghanaians to purchase locally assembled vehicles.
He said government was prepared to work with vehicle manufacturers, banks and other private-sector institutions to develop long-term financing arrangements.
Such arrangements, he said, could enable workers, doctors, teachers, nurses and other employees to acquire vehicles and repay the cost over time through their salaries.
Expansion expected to create thousands of jobs
The President said the Zonda Tech investment was expected to almost double the company’s direct employment while creating approximately 1,000 additional indirect jobs in logistics, maintenance, component supply and vehicle distribution.
He also congratulated the company for establishing the Zonda Tech Academy, which trains young Ghanaians in automotive skills.
He commended the Zonda Tech Foundation for announcing scholarships for young Ghanaians to study automotive manufacturing in China.
President Mahama also thanked Madam Yang Yang for her planned donation of a truck to the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, popularly known as MahamaCares.
New incentives for local assembly
President Mahama disclosed that the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Trade and Industry were finalising incentives for semi-knockdown vehicle assembly.
He said the government would introduce a local-content threshold that manufacturers must meet before qualifying for the proposed VAT exemption.
“We do not want companies bringing in fully built vehicles, removing only the steering wheel and tyres, and claiming they assembled them in Ghana,” he said.
The President said the Minister for Finance would announce the incentive package in the forthcoming national budget.
Zonda Tech and Ghana-China economic partnership
President Mahama said the Zonda Tech project also reflected the growing economic partnership between Ghana and China.
He cited collaborations involving Zonda Tech, Great Wall Motors, Forland, Chery and Sinotruk as examples of how foreign investment, technology and Ghanaian enterprise could combine to generate economic value.
He assured investors that government would continue to provide a stable and predictable investment environment, improve infrastructure, simplify regulatory procedures, strengthen industrial incentives and invest in technical education.
In return, he called on investors to deepen localisation, expand technology transfer, develop Ghanaian suppliers and use Ghana as a manufacturing base for exports across Africa.
24-Hour Economy taking shape
President Mahama further linked the Zonda Tech expansion to his administration’s 24-Hour Economy Programme, saying the industrial agenda was intended to increase productivity, expand exports and create employment opportunities for young people.
“The 24-Hour Economy is not merely a slogan. It is taking shape factory by factory and factory floor by factory floor,” he declared.
He said vehicles produced at the expanded facility would support several sectors of the economy, including agriculture, mining, construction and regional trade.
“They will move agricultural products from farms to markets, support mining operations, strengthen the construction industry and facilitate regional trade,” he added.
President Mahama congratulated Madam Yang Yang, the Board, Management and staff of Zonda Tech Ghana Limited, describing the company’s growth as proof that manufacturing in Ghana was commercially viable, globally competitive and full of potential.
He subsequently officially commissioned Phase Three of the Zonda Tech Ghana Limited Vehicle Assembly Plant, expressing the hope that the facility would continue to expand, create thousands of additional jobs and attract more investors to Ghana.
Story: Patrick Asford Boadu
