The Ghanaian government is easing the barriers of doing business in the country as it handed a 10-year tax holiday to the local car manufacturing firm, Kantanka Automobile. It also grants Kantanka a duty-free deal when they import materials for assembling and manufacturing purposes, says CEO Kwadwo Safo Jnr early this year at an award ceremony by the Company.
Kantaka produces both saloon and four-wheel drives and also has SUVs which include the Nkunimdie and the Kantanka Opasuo. There is also the Kantanta Onantefuo 4×4 pickup.
Kwadwo Safo Jnr in December said it has secured 13,000 orders from three African countries to help grow the local industry. The orders received are from West African countries but didn’t specify any country.
The company was founded by Dr Ing. Kwadwo Safo Kantanka, the Founder and Leader of Kristo Asafo Mission of Ghana and later incorporated as a limited liability company in 2001 with the main objective to research into the manufacturing of automotive components.
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Kantanka vehicles are assembled in Ghana from CKD (Complete Knock Down) kits supplied by partnered firms, through Chongqing Big Science & Technology. Aside from the import duties on materials imported, according to Kantaka, they pay for import duties, a situation Kwadwo said is unhelpful to their activist saying that they are expensive.
This development will see the company lower the prices for their range of vehicles by GHc20, 000.
“I know customers have raised concerns about our prices. Our saloon car, for example, is sold at GHc140, 000. If I had my way, I would not have sold the car for GHc140, 000. But we live in a country where you are taxed on everything you import.
Aside this, the government takes import duties on Kantanka cars as if you have imported the cars from other countries. They calculate the components in the car and charge you as if you imported it. We are paying GHc20, 000 on each car manufactured in Ghana,’’ says Kwadwo.
