Technical partner of the Factory, Mr Osaro
Ekonweren, who disclosed this after the
inauguration of the Board of the company by
Gov.Okezie lkpeazu, in Umuahia, described
the Aba Automated Shoe Factory as currently
having the most updated shoe producing
machines in the country.
In his words, "We were amazed and
impressed by what we saw on ground. Our
group has been into shoe production in
Nigeria for over a decade now and I must
confess that the machines we saw there
when we went on inspection cannot be found
anywhere in the country. We use machines in
our own company but what we have is
nowhere near what is at the Aba Shoe Factory
Ekonweren further explained that the factory
has an installed capacity for the production of
5,000 pairs of shoes daily which translates to
about 2 million pairs of shoes annually.
He added that there are facilities for
expansion and assured that they would
expand the capacity of the factory within the
next year.
He saluted Gov.lkpeazu's foresight in
establishing the factory, stressing that the
factory will change the face of shoe
production in Nigeria.
Ekinweren stated that his organization's
selection as technical partners for the factory
was based on proven track record of quality
automated shoe production spanning over 10
years.
Emphasizing that they make shoes for
companies like PEP of South Africa, among
others, he assured that the products from
Aba factory will be well received by the
markets.
Products from this factory will not just be for
the local market here but will be sold across
West Africa and beyond. The factory will be
run as a professional and commercial outfit
with clear opportunities for value addition and
job creation.
On when actual production will commence at
the factory, he assured that they will start test
runs in the next two weeks while they will
start production by the second week of
September.
He boasted that by December 2020, shoes
from the factory would have gained ground in
the local and international market
He also stated that the factory will also
produce other leather works like bags, belts,
wallets, etc.
Also speaking, the Executive Director,
Operations of the Factory, Mr Chinenye
Nwaogu said that with the new management
structure in place, Gov.lkpeazu has sent a
clear message that the factory will be run
solely on a basis of professionalism.
He said that the 30 shoemakers who were
trained in China by the Governor on the use of
machines in shoe production will form the
initial technical staff of the factory while there
will be huge emphasis on training for more
operators.
Nwaogu explained that the delay in the start
of production at the factory was because the
Governor had insisted that a professional
organization must be found to run the place
and the process took some time, coupled with
the pandemic of COVID-19 which shut down
the country for about 3 months.
The Governor inaugurated the Board of the
Factory yesterday and gave them a clear
mandate to raise the bar and cement the
place of Abia State as the powerhouse of
leather works in Nigeria and West Africa. The
Board has Mr. Mark Atasie, a Management
Consultant, as chairman
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