Mr. Shallop’s Kissy Industry and Trading Limited is currently making a multi-million dollars investment, which when completed, will become a manufacturing industry that will produce soap products, butter, palm cannel oil and other cosmetics for local consumptions and export to neighboring countries like Guinea and Liberia.
The construction phase of the project is expected to be completed in February next year and production starts by March, Company officials have assured.
When completed, the factory will be one of the biggest in the country as it hopes to not only employ hundreds of Sierra Leoneans directly and indirectly but also contributes to boosting the country’s investment opportunity and ensure economic growth, hence confirming government’s reliance on the private sector to substantially assist in building the capacity and capability of Sierra Leoneans.
“This is the first project of its kind in Sierra Leone, Guinea, The Gambia, Liberia and Guinea Bissau. It will be a long-lasting project that brings economic prosperity to Sierra Leone,” says Mohamed Dagher, General Manager/Project Coordinator, and added that the project is ahead of schedule as fifty percent work is being done already.
The Contractor, Breat Construction and Engineering Limited is currently partnering with some Indian Expatriates and local staff to do a simultaneous construction work on the refinery, boiler, filling station, administrative and other factory buildings etc.
He added that nine tanks of fifteen meters high each and with a capacity of eight thousand tons will soon be completed.
When completed, the factory will have various components, including soap manufacturing. It will manufacture the best soaps of international standards to meet various purposes like hotels, toilets, malaria soap, soap detergent, liquid soap, shampoo etc. The butter section will produce the margarine type of butter for domestic consumption and export, cooking butter for bread, cake etc.
The oil processing section will produce palm cannel nut oil of high quality for domestic and export purposes. The palm cannel residues will be used to process cosmetics.
Kissy Industry and Trading Limited is hoping to bring in the best production and processing machines from China and India, and Alfa Laval, which is the number one food processing equipment in the world.
Community people have highly acclaimed the investment, which they assure that it will be protected against all odds.
Charlady of the Community, Sarah Mansaray said the project will not only create employment for youth and women in the community, rather it will also assist mostly women from other communities to be indirectly employed. “Women will be coming here to buy oil and other products on a wholesale, while others will be supplying the company with raw materials to gain income,” she said.
