By: Hafsatu Z Bangura
The Minister for Trade and Industry Dr Edward Hinga Sandy on the 5th of January 2023 signed four investment agreements with major investing companies namely Gold Tree, SOL Co, Randcem and Rockcem companies respectively.
According to the Minister, Sierra Leone is an open-door country for people to invest in the country, he made this statement to the pressmen at the first weekly presser held at the Ministry of Information and Communications Conference hall, Youyi building in Freetown.
The signings were witnessed by members of the press, the Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Mr Solomon Jamiru Esq where showered praises on the Minister of Trade and Industry Dr Edward Hinga Sandy.
According to the Minister, these companies will boost businesses in the country and bob creation for Sierra Leoneans.
He said over the years Sierra Leone has been yearning for opportunities to bring companies on board to boost the economy of the country and cut down on importation and increase the export sector of the country.
These signings he said has both cabinet and parliamentary approval after presenting valid reason as to why these companies should operate in Sierra Leone, and adds that these companies are Manufacturing companies which will contribute to the GDP of the country.
Further adding that the reason why our Leones devalue is the imbalance between what we import and what we export, with this he said getting more manufacturing companies in the country will cut down on our import and improve our export value.
Giving out the profile of the four companies that were signed Dr Sandy stated that Gold Tree(SL) Limited is a liability company established under the companies Act No.5 of 2009, and registered under the laws of Sierra Leone. With its office at Old Mill Road Daru, Jawei Chiefdom in Kailahun District in Sierra Leone.
He said the company specializes in the cultivation of high-yielding oil palm and extraction of organic production.
In 2011-2020 the company he said started its palm oil project by conducting technical and environmental studies to confirm the feasibility of a palm oil project in Sierra Leone from the perspective of soil quality, climate and environmental conditions, road and shipping logistics as it is said to be presently exporting to the sub-region and locally thus and has invested in capital of Twenty Million United States Dollars the company is said to be desirous and committed, undertake and own as property, the project is to construct, develop and establish the infrastructure and install and operate a facility for fresh fruits oil palm bunches production, packaging and distribution with a direct and indirect employment capacity for 40,000 people.
Another agreement that was signed was with the company called SOL.Co is an affiliate of Wenpeng Group an international company from China that is engaged in Cement Production and has operations in twelve African countries and Latin America.
The Minister said the company has built six cement manufacturing plants in Africa since 2003, with its recent factory established in Guinea and has a planned investment of Forty Million USD to develop a Cement Manufacturing Factory in Sierra Leone that will be in operation within 36 months, a fully functioning cement manufacturing industry in the Western Area of Sierra Leone. Its office is located at 7 Lumley Beach Road Aberdeen Freetown.
The third agreement signed was RandCem Industry Limited, in which the Minister stated that the company is an affiliate of FAWAZ Building Materials and it’s desirous to invest 30 Million United States Dollars and seeks to establish a cement manufacturing grinding ball mill plant with an annual capacity of 35,000MT in the country with a period of 36 months.
RockCem Limited Company has also signed in which the Minister stated that it is an affiliate of Mega Cola Company that has been operating in Sierra Leone for over 15 years. The company he said has the potential to establish a cement manufacturing factory and has an investment level of 25 Million USD with a capacity to process up to 500 metric tons per year.
The Company he said will operate in two phases, first phase he said is the importation of Cement in large bags and repackaged locally into 30kg bags while the Second Phase is to construct a Cement Processing (Grinding) Plant in Freetown.
