Di price of cement don increase again for Ghana – di third time inside di first six months.
For some manufacturers, dem increase am four to five times already.
Di cost of di commodity since 2018 don dey rise quick quick, wey im dey affect pipo wey dey build for di construction industry.
For 2018, one bag of cement cost between 24 – 30 Ghana cedis ($2) but since den, di prices don increase wia now di bag of cement dey cost 105 – 110 Ghana cedis ($7).
Dis increase now dey cause sakala for di kontri.
John Ankomah wey be contractor don dey di construction industry for at least 13 years, wia im sabi how di cement prices don dey fly ova di years.
Oga Ankomah tok BBC News pidgin say some contractors begin dey use cheaper cement for dia works so say dem no go lose.
“Wit dis prices wey don dey go up every time, some manufacturers begin dey use poor raw materials to produce di commodity wey dem dey sell am below di standard market price.”
Oga Ankomah explain say some of dis manufacturers sabi di market wey dem don dey offer cheaper brands wey dey affect di quality of di houses pipo dey build.
“Already some of my fellow contractors gatz deals wit dis kind manufacturers wey dey produce low quality cement but as e be cheaper, dem dey buy am to do pipo dia jobs.”
For pipo like Ankomah, di price volatility dey affect dia pricing for building contracts, but dem dey try stay in business.
“To build for dis kontri today dey expensive well well sake of cement na di key material wey dey use. So di asking price for one building don increase between 5-7 percent,” John Ankomah add.
Na so pipo wia don dey manufacture cement blocks and bricks also don adjust dia prices.
Already those wey dey produce dis blocks don begin dey charge new price of between GH ¢ 1 – 2 ($1), effective 1 July.
For di manufacturers, di cost of cement don dey jump sake of di cost of raw materials, import duties of dis raw material (clinker) and general production.
Dem also complain say di exchange rate dey affect di price too.
For dis reason, goment dey push to regulate di price of cement for di kontri.
Goment wan regulate cement prices
Di trade and industry minister, KT Hammond tok say di cement manufacturers don dey use dia head to take advantage of di pipo.
Sake of di way dem dey increase di price without any control, im make pipo dey struggle to do building contracts.
“Dis manufactures wan make plenti profit but we tink say dat no good for di entire kontri say some select group of pipo wan milk di system,” di minister tok for one press conference.
Im tok say some cartel for di cement industry dey benefit from di economic situation wey dem dey make moni from pipo.
“I tink sometin dey wrong wit pricing for cement in Ghana – we for do sometin about am otherwise dis companies go dey fraud pipo,” di minister tok.
Goment thru di trade minister KT Hammond don dey introduce legislative instrument (LI) wey go regulate cement pricing.
Di minister explain say dis law go stop all dis manufacturers and dealers from selling dia products at any price.
Wetin dey inside di proposed law
For dis proposed Ghana standards authority pricing of cement regulations 2024, pesin neva fit to sell cement above di maximum price wia one committee don set.
Pesin neva go fit vary di wholesale or retail price of cement without approval of di committee.
Inside di proposed law, pesin wey no abide by dis regulation don commit offense wia im go chop fine of not less that 2,500 penalty units.
Pesin also fit to go jail for up to three years.
For dis law, supplier or retailer of cement gatz to submit report on di ex factory price of cement to di committee wia di committee go publish di average ex factory prices.
Dem gatz to publish dis for di website of di Ghana standards authority (GSA) and any oda platform wia di authority sabi say im go reach plenti pipo.
In case of di company wia no go follow di price regulation law, every director or officer of dat company go dey responsible.
Di opposition lawmakers in parliament on 26 June, block di trade minister’s attempt to submit dis legislative instrument for parliament sake of im no consult dem and oda stakeholders.
Na so di speaker of parliament direct say make di minister go consult all di stakeholders bifor im go submit di document .
Cement manufacturers don vex di minister
Di minister afta proceedings last week tok say im try to engage di cement manufacturers but dem neva show up for any meeting im call for.
“I gatz only one oda avenue, to encourage dem but if moral persuasion don fail, we gat di constitution and we all operate by di rule of law. Dis legislation go make pipo do di right tin,” KT Hammond tok.
Di minister tok say for sometime, Ghana neva dey produce enough cement but now “we gatz installed capacity of ova 11m tons – so e be profitable enterprise.”
According to di Ghana standards authority, at least thirteen cement manufacturing companies dey di kontri wia dem dey produce di commodity.
Dis manufacturers don vex say goment wan regulate cement prices for di kontri.
Di chamber or cement manufacturers, Ghana (COCMAG) don tok say di trade minister never consult dem ova proposed law.
According to di CEO of di chamber Dr George Dawson-Ahmoah, dis proposal dey “undermine fairness, transparency and inclusive decision-making wey im dey fail to deal wit di real issues wey dey affect production like di depreciation of di cedi against di US dollar.”
Im explain say “di unilateral decision of di minister to carry di proposed regulation go parliament without engaging with us neva dey fair.”
Di chamber don submit petition to parliament ova dis proposed law say make di house of legislature refuse di law.
“We dey beg make parliament decline dis legislative instrument (LI) and direct di minister to engage wit di chamber and oda stakeholders to discuss and deal wit di factors wey dey cause di price escalation,” di chamber tok last week.
Days afta di speaker direct say make di minister consult di stakeholders, some five manufacturers on Monday 1 July, boycott one meeting wit di minister.
Dem tok say di meeting sabi happun “behind closed doors” without di media – sake of e neva be press conference, na stakeholders meeting e be.
Di chamber dey hope say dem fit to reach some understanding wit di trade minister ova di decision to propose law wey go regulate cement pricing.
Some manufacturers dey use substandard materials
In November 2023, di Ghana standards authority shut down three cement factories sake of dem dey use inferior material for producing dis cement.
Di three companies all dey di Ashanti Region.
In addition to say dem close down dis companies, di Ghana standards authority also stop pipo from building new cement factories until dem “streamline di permit acquisition process by regulatory institutions.”
As di drama ova di high cost of di product don dey happun, di GSA say dem do market research wey dem find say more companies don dey produce cement wit substandard materials.
Oga for di standards authority Professor Alex Dodoo tok on Monday 1 July say, “we don notice say some particular industry players believe say di only way dem fit to compete for di market, na to reduce di quality of dia cement.”
“We don close three of dem wey we go close down some more in di coming days. We neva go compromise on standards, if you no dey meet dis standard, you gat no business to dey operate for dis space,” oga Dodoo tok.
Prof Dodoo wey also be di chairman of di cement manufacturing development committee wia goment task dem to developed document to regulate di pricing of di product, tok say di move na to ensure transparency for di industry.
“Indeed all di players sabi di cost buildup; clinker, energy and di exchange rate all dey key for dis production process, but di aim for dis law na to create open and fair trade,” im explain.
Im add say manufacturers don call for review of some of di taxes wey dey on production materials and oda costs.
Wetin go happun
Wetin dey certain for now, be say di trade minister go try to lay di legislative instrument again for parliament afta im meet wit di manufacturers and oda stakeholders.
If dat law don go thru, contractors like John Ankomah gatz to adjust to di new system wia im go buy cement at whichever price di goment go set am.
But im dey fear say plenty contractors go begin do shoddy work for dia clients.
Sake of pipo go try to cut corners and reduce di quality and quantity of cement dem go use for dia projects.
“Already as tins dey so, we dey get tori of buildings wey dem collapse for plenti places – but wit dis new price regulation law, more shoddy work go happun wey more buildings fit collapse,” John Ankomah tok BBC News pidgin.
For now consumers already begin to pay 108 – 115 Ghana cedid ($7-8) for one bag of cement wey depending wia you buy am and which brand, you fit to pay more.
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