Shortage of cement hits Upper East

An acute shortage of cement has hit the Upper East Region resulting in price hikes of the product ranging between GH¢20.00 and GH¢23.00 per bag in Bolgatanga and neighboring towns.

In an interview with the GNA in Bolgatanga, Madam Elizabeth Adams, one of the suppliers, attributed the problem to high transportation cost in bringing the product from the factories.

A retailer said the product was offloaded at his shop at GH¢20.00 per bag and he was selling it at GH¢21.00 to defray the additional cost of offloading.

By close of Thursday, shops in the region known for selling the product had depleted their stock and both suppliers and buyers were rushing to Yelwongo, a border town in Burkina Faso that is near Bolgatanga, to buy.

According to Mr Jafaru Adams, a retailer in Bolgatanga who went to Yelwongo to buy the cement to sell, most suppliers offloaded their consignment in Yelwongo because they received on the spot payment for the product.

He said delays in payments by some contractors, who are the main customers, had forced suppliers of cement to sell the product at the border town.

Source: GNA