New Vision Royal Company Limited seeks support for shea nut industry
Nakong, (UE) Feb 28, GNA - New Vision Royal Company Limited, a shea nut buying company, has appealed to the Government to support it with funds to train more women and young people to process quality shea nut products.
The Communication Director of the Company, Mr Godwin Narh, made the call at the close of a five-day trainer of trainers' workshop for 13 women and two men drawn from the West Mamprusi District in the Northern Region.
They have been trained to produce grade “A" shea butter for the international market.
“Much as we applaud government for setting up a shea butter processing plant at Buipe in the Northern Region, we would also like to use this occasion to appeal to government to take critical look at making more funds available to organizations like New Vision Royal to help it train the thousands of women who are still using old methods and knowledge in the production of shea butter,” he said.
Mr Narh explained that most of the women could not get good returns on their shea butter because their products fall short of the standard on the market, particularly, the international market.
New Vision Royal Company, which was established three years ago, at Nakong, in the Kassena-Nankana West of the Upper East Region, has so far trained over 400 youth and women in producing grade “A shea butter” for the international market.
Mr Nakong said when the Government makes funds available for training and setting up more machines, it would serve as pillars of development in communities in the Northern Regions and help to reduce poverty in the area.
The company, he said, had procured machines valued at GH¢ 40,000 Ghana to be established in the West Mamprusi District for the women it had trained to man them.
Some of the beneficiaries of the training programme are producing shea butter lotion, shea butter cubes and liquid soap, Moringa soap and black soap, Producing grade A shea butter and other shea nut products.
Mr Narh said the 15 persons who were trained at the last session would in turn train over 120 women to man the machines.
“The second phase of the training programme, which is targeted at training the women to produce the various value added products such as shea butter lotions and soap will come off soon,” he said.
Mr Narh said the Company also has shea butter centres at Tongo and Zaurungu in the Upper East Region while plans were also far advanced to establish three centres at Bole also in the Northern Region.
He further stressed the need for the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) and donor agencies to aid his outfit in making the shea butter industry more vibrant.
Mr Joseph Ayamga, a director of the Company, commended the National Youth Employment Programme for partnering the Company to implement some of its projects and said it had helped a lot especially the teeming unemployed youth in the area.
GNA