President John Dramani Mahama inaugurated the €10.2 million Northshore Apparel Ghana Limited in Savelugu on August 28, 2026. Funded via a blended model including GEXIM, KfW, and ADB, the zero-waste manufacturing hub has already deployed over 2,300 operators, aiming to expand northern employment and drive exports.
Defying Traditional Industrial Economics in Northern Ghana
President John Dramani Mahama inaugurated Northshore Apparel Ghana Limited at Savelugu in the Northern Region on Friday, August 28, 2026. The facility is Ghana’s first regenerative, zero-waste apparel manufacturing hub. It stands as a direct test of the government’s 24-Hour Economy vision.
Reflecting on conventional economic theories during the commissioning ceremony, President Mahama noted that traditional industrialists rarely considered the north due to perceived barriers regarding raw materials, markets, proximity to ports, and utilities.
“Northshore has made nonsense of all the arguments about factors of production. I remember in secondary school I did economics, and we have what they call the factors of production.”
President John Dramani Mahama, via Ghana News Agency
The project sits on litigation-free land made available by Yoo Naa Abdulai Yakubu Andani, the Paramount Chief of Savelugu. Officials expect the hub to absorb a minimum of 30,000 young workers at full strength, curbing the socioeconomic imbalance that drives northern youth to southern urban centers.
Blended Financing Backs a Zero-Waste Manufacturing Model
Valued at €10.2 million, the garment facility relies on a blended-finance model designed to accelerate industrial transformation. Funding originates from the Ghana Export-Import Bank (GEXIM), the Investing for Employment facility of Germany’s KfW Development Bank, the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), and equity contributions from the project promoters.
The physical infrastructure covers vast space tailored for high-volume output. Alhaji Mohammed Nurideen, founder and chief executive officer of the company, detailed the layout in an interview prior to the opening.
Beyond structural scale, sustainable and zero-waste production practices form the core of daily operations. The factory integrates renewable energy—including a 500-kilowatt peak solar power system—fair labor policies, and environmentally responsible manufacturing to align regional development with green industrial standards.
Training Programs and Institutional Support for Local Youth
Operational readiness required an extensive training pipeline before the official launch. The factory is currently training 2,000 young people in various employable skills. State backing splits this intake: the Youth Employment Agency sponsors 1,000 trainees, while the National Youth Authority supports the remaining 1,000.
The workforce draws heavily from vulnerable populations. Training cohorts include local youth, women, and students from the Savelugu School for the Deaf. Having already trained and deployed more than 2,300 operators across 50 sewing lines, direct employment projections anticipate scaling from initial phases up to 10,000 workers as capacity expands.
Apparel Executive Asks Government for Domestic Uniform Contracts
During the opening ceremonies, leadership turned attention toward the domestic market. Chief Executive Officer Nurideen Mohammed urged the administration to allocate a portion of national uniform procurement for security services, schoolchildren, and healthcare workers to local manufacturers.
“Mr President, we recognise that the biggest market back home is the government. Our security services are clothed. Our schoolchildren are clothed. Our health workers are clothed. Much of that cloth is presently made outside this country and paid for in foreign exchange.”
Nurideen Mohammed, CEO of Northshore Apparel Ghana Limited, via MyJoyOnline
Mr. Mohammed stated that the facility does not seek preferential protection, but rather an equal opportunity to compete on price, quality, and delivery speed against international vendors. Securing local procurement orders would retain foreign exchange, sustain domestic wages, and provide a stable order book while international export channels scale up.
Global Retailers and October Export Timelines
International expansion is already underway alongside domestic appeals. Global buyers and suppliers have evaluated factory samples and finalized initial business agreements. The company verified that South African retail chain Pick n Pay, alongside suppliers carrying labels such as Walmart, TJ Maxx, DKNY, and American Rag, have reviewed production lines and confirmed compliance with global standards.
The first export containers from the Savelugu industrial hub are scheduled for release in October. Backed by institutional funding from entities like the Ghana Export-Import Bank, the factory intends to prove that large-scale textile manufacturing can thrive in northern municipalities while servicing global retail networks.
