TEMA, Ghana, 15th September: President John Dramani Mahama has challenged Ghana’s automotive industry to move beyond vehicle assembly and develop a fully integrated manufacturing value chain capable of producing key components locally.
According to President Mahama, assembling vehicles in Ghana should not be the country’s final destination, stressing the need for stronger local participation in the production of batteries, tyres, wiring harnesses, seats, glass, plastics and metal parts.
He made the call on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, when he officially commissioned Phase Three of the Zonda Tec Ghana Limited Vehicle Assembly Plant in Tema.
President Mahama said deeper localisation will strengthen domestic supply chains, retain more value within Ghana’s economy and create additional employment opportunities for Ghanaians.
“Assembling, however, cannot be our 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.
He urged Zonda Tec to identify and invest in the production of some automotive components locally as part of efforts to deepen industrialisation.
“Doing so will strengthen domestic supply chains, retain more value within our economy and create additional jobs for Ghanaians,” President Mahama added.
The President said Ghana’s ambition to become the automotive manufacturing hub of West Africa is “deliberate, strategic and achievable.”
He noted that the Ghana Automotive Development Policy had already attracted globally recognised brands, including Volkswagen, Toyota, Nissan, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Great Wall Motors, GLE, Chery, Forland and Peugeot, while also creating space for indigenous manufacturers such as Kantanka.
President Mahama said Ghana must now take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), headquartered in Accra, and the continent’s market of more than 1.4 billion people to build a competitive automotive export industry.
He pointed out that Africa currently manufactures barely one per cent of global vehicle output despite being home to almost one-fifth of humanity.
The President also announced that government is positioning Ghana to become a leader in electric mobility by leveraging the country’s strategic minerals, including lithium, and its growing renewable energy capacity.
He said the long-term vision is to establish an integrated value chain “from minerals to batteries, from batteries to vehicles, from vehicles to exports, all proudly made in Ghana.”
President Mahama further disclosed that the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition is developing an electric vehicle policy, with a major focus on regulating charging infrastructure and encouraging solar-powered charging.
He said the policy would help ensure that the growth of electric mobility did not create imbalances in Ghana’s electricity system.
President Mahama also called for closer collaboration between manufacturers, banks and the private sector to develop long-term vehicle financing schemes that would enable workers, including doctors, teachers and nurses, to acquire locally assembled vehicles and pay over time through their salaries.
He said the expanded Zonda Tec facility represented another important step in Ghana’s industrialisation journey and demonstrated the potential of private enterprise when aligned with national development priorities.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭
