The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, has disclosed that some factories established under the One District, One Factory (1D1F) initiative have been converted into churches after ceasing operations.
Appearing before Parliament’s Assurance Committee, Mr Ibrahim attributed the failure of several 1D1F projects to poor siting decisions, arguing that some factories were established in districts without the raw materials needed to sustain production.
According to him, political considerations often took precedence over economic viability when selecting locations for the factories.
“We sited factories and companies far away from raw materials because politicians were coming from these faraway areas. How many of them survived?” he asked.
The Minister said the collapse of some of the factories has resulted in abandoned facilities being repurposed as places of worship.
He also noted that several state-owned enterprises established over the years had either collapsed, been sold or privatised because they were not commercially sustainable.
Mr Ibrahim said the government intends to avoid similar mistakes as it implements its proposed 24-hour economy markets by ensuring future projects are located based on economic and commercial considerations rather than political interests.
“Now the power has been given to us to conduct research in the various districts together with the District Chief Executives, so we know where these factories will be economically viable,” he said.
He added that detailed feasibility studies and local economic assessments would guide the siting of future projects to improve their sustainability, increase productivity and create long-term employment.
