KT Hammond orders immdiate halt to cement price increases

The Minister for Trade and Industry, Kobina Tahir Hammond, has issued a directive for an immediate rollback of recent cement price hikes.

Additionally, he has mandated that all cement manufacturers in the country publish retail prices to curb arbitrary increases in major building materials.

In a statement released by the Ministry on Tuesday, May 15, the Minister

Read full articleinstructed the Cement Manufacturing Development Committee (CMDC) to ensure compliance with these directives without delay.

The statement reaffirmed the Minister's previous call for the CMDC to collaborate with cement companies to establish uniform cement prices nationwide. This entails implementing a unified pricing mechanism akin to the Unified Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF) used by the National Petroleum Authority for fuel retail in Ghana.

Established under the Ghana Standards Authority (Manufacture of Cement) Regulations, 2023 (Ll 2480), the CMDC serves as the regulatory body for cement manufacturing in the country. It is tasked with promoting the manufacturing, wholesale, and retail of cement and cement components.

The Committee's membership includes representatives from cement manufacturers, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the Environmental Protection Agency, the Ghana Institution of Engineers, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI), and the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation.