Ghacem supports health, educational institutions
Ghacem Ltd has donated 15,000 bags of cement to selected health and educational institutions in deprived communities in the Greater Accra, Central, Western, Eastern and Volta regions.
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The donation, valued at GH¢480,000, is to support the institutions which are currently undertaking various infrastructural projects.
The company, through its Ghacem Cement Foundation (GCF), annually donates cement to institutions grouped into southern and northern sectors of the country.
Last Friday’s event was held at the Elmina Beach Resort in Cape Coast where recipients from the southern sector gathered to receive their allocations.
The northern sector, which consists of the Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions, will also receive their free cement allocations in Sunyani in a fortnight.
Challenging times
Addressing the gathering, the Managing Director of Ghacem, Mr Morten Gade, said the event marked 15 years of the noble objective of assisting communities to develop their health and educational infrastructure or build new ones.
He explained that it was an initiative to support the country in infrastructural development.
Mr Gade observed the challenging times for the manufacturing sector, citing unfair trade practices which he said had affected this year’s donation, as the company was unable to meet the huge volume of applications.
“Manufacturing companies play a huge role in supporting the government’s development agenda through the payment of duties and taxes, and as such need to be protected by frowning on players who do only imports,” he said.
He disclosed that Ghacem alone in 2016 paid GH¢250 million duties and taxes, an attestation of its loyalty to the country.
Mr Gade invited all to join the company this year as it celebrated 50 years of leadership in the cement industry, assuring that the company would maintain its market leadership and continue to provide best cement grades for customers.
15 years to date
The Chairman of the GCF, Ehunabobrim Prah Agyensaim VI, said for 15 years running, the foundation had donated over 500,000 bags of cement valued at GH¢16 million to support health and educational infrastructure development in about 4,451 communities.
That, he said, was a demonstration of the company’s commitment to support the development of the country.
He urged the beneficiaries to use the cement for the intended purpose and cautioned that any institution found abusing the noble objective would be blacklisted forever from receiving any such support from Ghacem.
Clinker at FOB
In an interview with the press, the Strategy and Corporate Affairs Director of Ghacem, Rev. Dr George Dawson-Ahmoah, who is also the Secretary to the foundation, was unhappy that although the free on board (FOB) value of clinker was pegged at $34 per tonne on the international market, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority valued it at $44 a tonne, a difference of $10.
According to him, that had increased the company’s cost of production, and disclosed that Ghacem was in talks with Customs, expressing the belief that such issues would be addressed to provide stability in the price of cement.