The International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced a partnership with the Mohinani Group Limited to establish Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) recycling plants in Ghana and Nigeria on February 12.
This initiative, backed by a $37 million loan, will reduce plastic waste, create jobs, and enhance local economies.
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The Loan Agreement: Supporting PET recycling
The partnership involves setting up PET recycling facilities through Mohinani subsidiaries Polytank Ghana Limited and Sonnex Packaging Nigeria Limited. Each plant will be able to produce 15,000 tons of recycled PET (rPET) resins annually, which will replace virgin plastics used in food and beverage packaging.
The raw materials for these plants will originate 90 per cent from local small plastic collection businesses.
Roshan Mohinani, Strategy and Transformation Manager for Mohinani Group highlighted the initiative’s vision: “The rPET project was born out of our vision to close the bottle-to-bottle recycling loop in Africa and our commitment to advancing environmental sustainability. This initiative is expected to create over 4,000 jobs along the value chain in Nigeria and Ghana, providing economic empowerment, especially for young people and women.”
Dahlia Khalifa, IFC Regional Director for Central Africa and Anglophone West Africa, emphasised: “IFC’s partnership with Mohinani underscores our dedication to promoting environmental sustainability and economic development in Ghana and Nigeria. By recycling up to 30,000 tons of PET waste annually, these new plants will protect the environment and replace imports with locally recycled materials”.
This effort aligns with global sustainability goals by reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with virgin plastics production.
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Implementation across Nigeria and Ghana
The establishment of these facilities is projected to create more than 4,000 direct and indirect jobs across both countries. Additionally, each country is expected to save approximately $21 million annually on imports due to increased use of locally sourced recycled materials.
Ashok Ramchand Mohinani noted that this partnership marks another milestone for his group’s contributions over nearly six decades: “For nearly six decades… we have been pioneers in manufacturing… this partnership makes another leap forward”.
Ms Khalifa further underscored IFC’s commitment, stating, “These architect plans have the potential to create more than 4 thousand direct and indirect jobs; that is, four thousand families and households.”
The partnership shows both parties’ commitment to sustainability and employment creation. IFC has invested about $2 billion in Ghana over the past decade and wants to encourage industry.