Mr Alan Kyerematen, Minister of Trade and Industry, has attributed any delays that have occurred in the payment of interest subsidies tied to the One District One Factory Programme to delays in the release of funds.

He cited the Ministry of Finance, or delays in the processing of loan applications of One District One Factory (1D1F), companies by Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) as the drawbacks.

Mr Kyerematen told Parliament, in Accra, that in the case of the latter, once processing was completed by the PFI, the Ministry authorized the release of interest subsidies to support the 1D1F companies.

The Minister made the remarks when he appeared before Parliament to answer a question by Dr Mark Kurt Nawaane, Member of Parliament for Nabdam, on reasons for the delay by the government in fulfilling their promise of assisting pharmaceutical companies to pay the interest on their loans as participants of the 1D1F Programme.

“Mr Speaker, since the inception of the 1D1F Programme, the government through the Ministry of Trade and Industry has to a large extent ensured the timely release of funds as Interest Subsidies to de-risk loans provided by the Participating Financial Institutions to beneficiary companies including the pharmaceutical companies under reference,” he said.