The Wongpanit delegation, led by the President, Dr. Somthai Wongcharden, briefed the Minister on the company’s operations.
According to Dr. Wongcharden, Wongapanit focuses mainly on recyclable materials, but adds “Now we are also developing non-recyclable waste from municipal solid waste, so we are also working with landfills.”
“We collect waste from various households and then take it to a recycling facility,” he said.
He pointed out that the main success factor of the company is to think about the needs of the market, then “we create products and services to meet the demands of the market.”
Dr. Wongcharden, who spoke through an interpreter, noted that they went to the waste mining city, said that the waste mining company from the city.
“We work as a private company but we also have a relationship with the Thai government,” he admitted.
Furthermore, the President of Wongpanit Pathong Co., Ltd., said that his company manages hazardous waste that can be recycled such as car batteries, electronic waste (e-waste) and others.
“We also recycle car batteries, recycle used cars. We also work with Mercedes Benz Thailand to dispose of damaged cars,” he said.
He informed that Wongpanit Pathong Co., Ltd., has 2,334 branches throughout Thailand, adding that the company has branches in Cambodia and the United States and other parts of the world.
Branches in the United States, he said, were doing well.
The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Mrs. Cecilia Abena Dapaah, warmly welcomed the Wongpanit delegation, and expressed her happiness to the Thai investors in Ghana.
“I must say that you are with the right person and the right company (making reference to Dr. Siaw Agyepong and the Jospong Group of Companies),” he told the delegates.
He praised the Jospong Group of Companies for growing in the recycling space.
“But I believe you [Wongpanit Pathong] older and larger as a company so cooperation would be beneficial,” he said positively.
In light of the above, the minister challenged the Jospong Group of Companies and other private companies interested in exploring the possibility of investing in the recycling of used vehicles.
“It will be very interesting for the Jospong Group of Companies and other private companies interested in exploring investment in the used vehicle recycling space,” he insisted.
He emphasized that this is a new area that has prospects for companies and investors, saying that it is interesting to know that Thai waste management companies have turned to recycling used cars.
“We have a lot of wrecked cars sitting at the police station; many used tires collect mosquitoes, especially in the rainy season, and this area is very interesting,” he said.
Mrs. Dapaah seized the opportunity to appeal to foreign and local investors to come and invest in Ghana’s waste management space, underscoring that Ghana produces about 7 million tons of waste a year of which about 64% is organic.
He said the collaboration between the government and the private sector is producing “great results.”
“…and I must say we are on the right track,” he admitted.
One of the major collaborations, he said, is the construction of recycling plants in all 16 regions of the country.
“And as I said, we have 2 out of 3 liquid waste management companies that are also ready. One has been commissioned and we have 2 more to come,” said Mrs. Dapaah.
The waste management facility, he said, was made possible through the government’s cooperation with JGC.
Mrs. Dapaah reiterated the government’s policy to work with the private sector to drive the country’s growth, stressing that “without the private sector we will not succeed.”
Furthermore, the delegation visited several JGC facilities in the Greater Accra Region.
These are JA Plant Pool, Sewerage Systems Ghana Ltd., Integrated Recycling and Compost Plant (IRECoP).
The rest are Abgobgloshie Metal Scrub Dealer, Adipa Waste Management Center and Accra Compost and Recycling Plant (ACARP).