Kia, Hyundai to establish assembly plants in Ghana next year Ghana

Two prominent Korean car manufacturers, Hyundai and Kia Motors, are set to establish assembly plants in Ghana by 2022.

This will spur economic growth and create jobs for the teeming unemployed youth in Ghana.

The Korean Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Lim Jung-Taek made this known on Sunday during the National Korean Foundation Day virtual celebration in Accra. 

According to him, the development would further boost the economic relations between Ghana and Korea.

Mr Jung-Taek told the celebrants, including the Mr Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, that Korea and Ghana had consistently sought to strengthen a mutually beneficial relationship by promoting investment opportunities in both countries.

He said the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)   which Secretariat is based in Accra, would offer yet another opportunity for Korean businesses to have far more access to the regional and sub-regional market.

Mr Ampratwum-Sarpong for his part said government would create a conducive environment for both local and foreign businesses to thrive.

He said Korea’s leading car manufacturers; Kia and Hyundai manufacture durable and affordable cars.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had since taking office in January 7, 2017 embarked on a deliberate industrialisation agenda to make Ghana self reliant.

Currently, there are about four European automobile assembly plants in Ghana.

Kia and Hyundai are household names in Ghana and there are about 700,000 Korean cars in Ghana.

But as the use of fuel consuming vehicles pose a challenge to the climate due to changes caused by air pollution, most cars manufacturers are shifting attention towards electric cars.

It is estimated that by 2050, about 40 per cent of the cars used across the globe would run on electric energy and can be charged twice every 300 kilometers.

BY MALIK SULLEMANA