UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES INSTITUTE OF AFRICAN STUDIES A SOCIO-ECONOMIC HISTORY OF GHANA’S BONSA TYRE COMPANY, 1963 TO CONTEMPORARY TIMES. BY EMMANUEL AMOAKO (10876470) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MPHIL AFRICAN STUDIES DEGREE SEPTEMBER, 2023 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh i DECLARATION I hereby declare that except for references to other people’s work, which have been duly acknowledged, this work is the result of my research work done under supervision and has neither in part nor in whole been presented elsewhere for another degree. Emmanuel Amoako (candidate) Sign………………………… Date…27 December 2023… Prof. Samuel Ntewusu (Principal Supervisor) Sign………………………… Date: …27 December 2023… Dr. Edem Adotey (Supervisor) Sign………………………… Date: …27 December 2023… University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ii ABSTRACT The invention of the motor vehicle is one of the most amazing developments in human and mobility. By its design, tyres are critical to the mobility of a car. Motor vehicles were introduced to the Gold Coast during the early 1900s. They ushered in significant changes in the mobility of people and goods and in the provision of services in ways which had been previously unimagined. But while it became indispensable to social and economic development in the country, it came with several challenges, among which tyre shortage was crucial, particularly from the 1960s. This led to the manufacture of locally made tyres in Ghana as part of Ghana’s industrialization efforts. This work examines the development of Ghana’s first company, established to produce vehicle tyres locally. The establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company, although started in the 1960s, is a part of the complex developments in the history and developments of motor transport, rubber cultivation, and industrialisation in Ghana. Using information from archival sources, newspapers and oral interviews, this work argues that regardless of its wavering performance, the Bonsa Tyre Company was not irrelevant; it was essential to Ghana’s socio-economic development. It played a pivotal role in Ghana’s transport history as a lifeline in sustaining Ghana’s motor transport system at the depths of its challenges from 1969 until it collapsed in the 2000s. The company's manufacture and distribution of locally manufactured tires was a crucial remedy to Ghana’s transportation challenges with tyre shortages until a substantial remedy was secured. Thus, Ghana’s transport could not have succeeded without the Bonsa Tyre Company. Again, it contributed to the economic and social progress of the Bonsa community, but the collapse of the Bonsa Tyre Company led to a severe socio-economic decline. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii ACKNOLEDGEMENT I sincerely thank my supervisors, Professor Samuel Ntewusu and Dr. Edem Adotey, for their guidance, support and mentorship throughout my research. Their invaluable input and feedback were instructive to the completion of this work. I am eternally grateful. I am also grateful to my parents, Eno Akua Semwaa and Agya Amoako-Gyampah, and my brothers, Dr Akwasi Kwarteng Amoako-Gyampah, Nana Yaw Kyei, Kwaku Amoako-Atta and Kwame Appiagyei for their unwavering support and encouragement throughout my studies. You have been my inspiration. I am particularly grateful to Mr Emmanuel Adu (Sir Right) for hosting me in his home during my data gathering in the Western region. My most profound appreciation also goes to my respondents for their hospitality, time, patience and invaluable experiences they shared with me. They are indeed the co-authors of this work. I also thank the staff of the Ghana National Archives Accra staff and the Western Regional Archives Sekondi staff for their assistance during my data collection. I also appreciate the support of my friends and colleagues Perry Essiem, Asiakwen Abagdem, Mr Kwame Crenstil and Mrs Aseye Tamakloe, Kwabena Boafo, Maame Adwoa Marfo, W.K Dziewornu of the Institute of African Studies. This journey would have been lonely without you. I am also grateful to my tutors, fellows and staff of IAS, particularly Mr Fiifi Ankrah, Ms. Gertrude Nkrumah, Ms. Akosua Senaye and Mr. Tei Kumado for their immense support and encouragement throughout the research process. I want to express my sincere gratitude to all my friends and family who, in diverse ways, supported my studies. I thank you all for your support and encouragement. Me da mo ase! Aseda nka me NyankopƆn ne Nananom ! University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ............................................................................................................................. i ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOLEDGEMENT ................................................................................................................. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................... iv CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................. 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 Background ................................................................................................................................. 1 The Research Problem ................................................................................................................ 5 Research Objectives .................................................................................................................... 5 Research Questions ..................................................................................................................... 6 Justification and Significance of the Study ................................................................................. 6 Literature Review ........................................................................................................................ 7 Rubber, Industrialization and Transport...................................................................................... 7 The Study Area; A brief history. ............................................................................................... 19 Methodology ............................................................................................................................. 21 Outline of Chapters ................................................................................................................... 25 CHAPTER TWO .......................................................................................................................... 26 MOTOR TRANSPORT, TYRE MANUFACTURING AND RUBBER PRODUCTION IN THE GOLD COAST ............................................................................................................................. 26 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 26 Rubber Production in the Gold Coast ....................................................................................... 27 Tyres and Carriages in the Gold Coast...................................................................................... 29 Motor Vehicles and Tyres in the Gold Coast ............................................................................ 31 CHAPTER THREE ...................................................................................................................... 38 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh v THE ORIGINS AND ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BONSA TYRE COMPANY 1957-1969. . 38 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 38 Bonsa Tyre Company – The Antecedents ................................................................................. 39 Siting the Tyre Company .......................................................................................................... 42 Establishing the Factory ............................................................................................................ 45 A New Deal: The Firestone Company ...................................................................................... 53 CHAPTER FOUR ......................................................................................................................... 57 THE OPERATION OF THE BONSA TYRE COMPANY. ........................................................ 57 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 57 Tyre Production, Distribution and Sales ................................................................................... 58 Decline, Rehabilitation and Collapse ........................................................................................ 60 CHAPTER FIVE .......................................................................................................................... 73 THE BONSA TYRE COMPANY AND GHANA’S SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT . 73 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 73 Bonsa Tyre Company and Ghana’s Transport Industry ............................................................ 73 Bonsa Tyre Company and Ghana’s Labour Market? ................................................................ 79 The Bonsa Tyre Company and The Bonsaso Community ........................................................ 82 CHAPTER SIX ............................................................................................................................. 96 SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................. 96 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................... 103 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................................... 111 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Background Industrialisation is a critical factor in any nation's socio-economic development and transformation. In the early years of independence, Ghana was cognisant of the significance of industrialization to its development. In 1959, the five-year development plan envisioned the establishment of about 600 factories as a way of ensuring economic diversification, reducing imports and providing employment for the masses.1 In the 1960s, Ghana underwent a period of industrialization that aimed to diversify the economy, reduce imports and promote economic growth. One key area of focus during this time was the development of the country's agricultural resources for industrialization. This included harnessing rubber for local tyre manufacturing. During the 19th century, Ghana's rubber industry (then Gold Coast) played a significant role in contributing to the European rubber tyre industry. The invention of the pneumatic tyre for bicycles in Europe in the late 1880s led to a surge in demand and increased rubber prices. The demand further rose after 1900 with the application of pneumatic tyres in the automobile industry, leading to an expansion in car production and the need for more car tyres.2 Motor transport was introduced in the Gold Coast by early 1900 and became increasingly significant in the Gold Coast economy from the third decade of the 20th century yet the colonial 1 “What the five-year scheme means to Ghana”, Ghanaian Times, March 25, 1959. 2Pneumatic tyre was initially invented by R. W Thompson in 1845 in the United Kingdom for horse-drawn carriages and was not effective for motor vehicle. The idea was further developed for bicycles and patented by J.B Dunlop in 1888. The Michelin Brothers in France were the first to use pneumatic tyres on an automobile during the Paris- Bordeaux-Paris automobile race in 1895. The invention was therefore a great boost in the motor vehicle industry. It improved the riding comfort, it also significantly reduced the rolling resistance. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2 administration never embarked or promoted the establishment of tyre manufacturing using local rubber in the emergent tyre market which came with the motor transport industry in the Gold Coast. Motor transport in the Gold Coast relied on imported tyres, the services of local vulcanizers and the reuse of old tyres. Even this supply was under the dictates of changes within British rubber policies. From the late 1950s, the Convention People’s Party (CPP) government, which was led by Kwame Nkrumah took a keen interest in rubber cultivation to diversify the cash crop economy and boost its industrialisation agenda. Acutely aware of the country's overdependence on cocoa and imports, the CPP government made a substantial investment to develop other crops for export and industrialization. In 1957, the Agricultural Development Corporation (ADC), together with a Danish firm, R. T. Briscoe, started a 5,000-acre rubber estate at Dixcove, and by 1961 about 2,140 acres were planted.3 Many other areas in Ghana around Central, Eastern, and Ashanti were also cultivated by the State Farm Corporation in 1963 and several efforts were made by the government to rally cooperatives in rubber production. An integral part of Nkrumah’s rubber production scheme was to construct a state-owned tyre factory with assistance from Czechoslovakia. In December 1961, officials from Ghana’s Ministry of Industries met with Czech officials to discuss plans for the project. They agreed that the factory be built in Bonsaso, because of its proximity to the rubber-producing areas. The Bonsa Tyre Company Limited (hereafter BTC) was expected to start production by 1964.4 However, due to some unexpected delays, the commencement of its establishment began in 1963 and by 1966, 3 Marvin P. Miracle and Ann Seidman, State farms in Ghana (Madison: University of Wisconsin, 1968), 9. 4 Keri Lambert, “Tapping Ghanaians, 1957-66” (Paper, Yale University, 2016), 1-28. Specific references will be made to the Firestone Ghana Limited as and when it becomes relevant. This is to ensure consistency of name to prevent possible confusion. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3 the factory was about fifty per cent complete.5 The sudden overthrow of the Nkrumah government by the National Liberation Council (NLC) in 1966 would further stall the completion of the project. Between 1966 and 1967, the NLC’s National Economic Committee invited foreign companies to invest in state companies.6 The state companies that were opened up for private foreign investment included the Bonsa Tyre Company. The tyre company was subsequently taken over by the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company to operate as a joint venture with the government of Ghana under a new name, Firestone Ghana Limited. The Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company owned sixty percent shares with the remaining forty percent shares owned by the government of Ghana. The company’s commercial production began in 1969 reaching a peak production of 554,858 tyres in 1977.7 Barely two decades down the line, Firestone withdrew from the joint venture in 1980 and the company was renamed the Bonsa Tyre Company Limited with the government as the single shareholder by 1981. 8 In 1986 the government of Ghana with assistance from the African Development Bank embarked on a rehabilitation project to revamp the Bonsa Tyre Company. The aim was to rehabilitate, refurbish and train technical staff to increase the production level of the company. The rehabilitation commenced in 1990 with Dunlop International Projects Limited as its technical partner.9 Nevertheless, by 1999, this objective was not met because the rehabilitation was not fully completed by the end of the project. Decades later, the factory became defunct and the government placed the company on divestiture.10 5African Development Bank, Project Completion Report Bonsa Rehabilitation Project (Ghana: 2000), 1. 6 Lambert, “Tapping Ghanaians”, 23. 7 Stephen Adei, “Technological Capacity and Aborted Industrialization in Ghana: The Case of Bonsa Tyre Company”, World Development, Vol.18 No.11. (1990): 1501-1511. 8 Agricultural Development Bank, Project Completion Report Bonsa Rehabilitation Project, 1. 9 Ibid. 10 Aklorbotu Dortsey, “Western Region’s Bonsa Tyre Factory Defunct”. Graphic Online, April 12, 2021. https://www.graphic.comgh/news/general/western-region-s-bonsa-tyre-factory-defunct.html University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 4 As noted earlier Ghana was aware of the potential of industries in the early days of its independence. Industries play a pivotal role in shaping a nation's socio-economic landscape and improving the well-being of its citizens. They serve as vital drivers of economic growth and development, generating employment, income, and prosperity for society. They contribute to reducing poverty, promoting social inclusion, and nurturing human capital. Yet the existing narrative on an industrial company the Bonsa Tyre Company paints an image of successive bouts of inefficiencies, exploitation and finally collapse. This narrative shows no direct importance of the rubber industry and its connection to Ghana's motor transport industry. Again, researchers' attention to the flaws of the Bonsa Tyre Company (BTC) has masked appreciation of how the Bonsa Tyre Company contributed to Ghana's socioeconomic growth, particularly the development of motor transport and the Bonsaso community. What this research seeks to do is to trace the origin and evolution of the Bonsa Tyre Company within a historical framework from its inception, and its collapse to its current state, highlighting its significance to the development of Ghana’s motor transport industry and the Bonsa community. This is imperative on several grounds. First, understanding how the BTC contributed to the development of Ghana's motor transport industry allows for a more nuanced assessment of its economic significance. Again, investigating the BTC's impact on the Bonsaso community sheds light on the social and community development it fostered. Finally, we can achieve an varied understanding of the BTC's role in Ghana’s History from the existing narrative. The period under review (1963 to contemporary time), marks the commencement of the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company and its eventual collapse and will enable this work to be situated in the extant national and community realities. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 5 As a social-economic history, by focusing on the experiences of workers, motorists and the Bonsa community with the Bonsa Tyre company, this work moves beyond solely political and economic perspectives to provide a more nuanced understanding of the company's history and its impact on the surrounding community, the motor transport industry and actors in the industry. The experiences of workers, motorists and the Bonsa community help to shed light on the everyday implications of the company's presence, operations, and eventual closure. In this way, this work adds to the history of the Bonsa Tyre company and provides a more complete picture of its impact on the wider society. The Research Problem The problem addressed in this work is that the significance of the rubber industry and its connection to Ghana's transport history has been largely overlooked in scholarship. The focus of key scholars including Adei and Sawyerr on the deficiencies of the Bonsa Tyre Company (BTC) and its neo-colonial narrative, has obscured understanding of how the Bonsa Tyre Company's activities affected socio-economic development in Ghana particularly the development of motor transport and the Bonsaso community. This study aims to fill this gap by examining the history of the Bonsa Tyre Company and its role in the development of Ghana's motor transport industry and the socio-economic development of the Bonsa community and thus establish a connection between Ghana's agro-industrial history, transport and community histories. Research Objectives The overarching objective of this study is to examine the socio-economic history of the Bonsa Tyre Company. The research focuses specifically on these objectives: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 6 1. to traces the connection between the rubber industry and the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company. 2. to examines how the development of the Bonsa Tyre Company was significant to the development of Ghana’s motor transport industry. 3. to examines the significance of the Bonsa Tyre Company to the Bonsaso Community. Research Questions In addressing the above objectives, I seek to answer these questions: 1. Under what circumstances did the Bonsa Tyre Company originate? 2. In what ways has the development of the Bonsa Tyre Company contributed to the development of Ghana’s motor transport industry? 3. How was the Bonsa Tyre Company significant to the development of the Bonsaso community? Justification and Significance of the Study Agriculture, industrialization and transportation are complementary in socioeconomic development yet the efficient functioning of these sectors has been an elusive pursuit in Ghana’s development drive. The Bonsa Tyre Company was one such company which demonstrates these interdependent and complementary sectors yet the dominant story of its history is a single narrative of deficiencies and exploitation. Indeed, we must recognize its shortfalls but in doing so we should not neglect its impact on the wider Ghanaian society. Considering how rubber and the Bonsa Tyre Company have been significant to Ghana’s motor transport industry and the Bonsaso community, University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 7 it is quite surprising that the literature on the Bonsa Tyre Company has overlooked this essential part of the narrative. This work will therefore contribute to filling the lacuna in the existing knowledge in connection to Ghana’s transport history as well as community histories. It contributes to our understanding of how large corporations and government entities interact and impact the lives of ordinary people. Literature Review Rubber, Industrialization and Transport. This literature review focuses on three key areas; rubber, industrialization and motor transport in Ghana. This is crucial for understanding the broader context in which the Bonsa Tyre Company operated, potential interdependencies and its significance within the country's economic and social landscape. It is important to begin the literature review by first looking at the development of the rubber industry. The rubber industry is intricately connected to the global production and supply chain of tyre production. It is therefore crucial for understanding the connection and implications of global tyre production in Ghana. This is the main focus of the next chapter. Rubber production in Africa and other places in the world has reiceved increasing attention in schloarship. Varios literature have shown the complexities within the rubber ecosystem and its implications for local and industrial development. The economic and social impact of rubber production and trade in West Africa and other regions has been the subject of various scholarly works. For instance, J. F. Munro's work examined the limited lasting impact of British capital on rubber planting in Africa, attributing it to the colonial government's unenthusiastic attitude.11 In a 11 Forbes J. Munro, "Monopolists and speculators: British investment in West African rubber, 1905–1914." The Journal of African History 22, no. 2 (1981): 263-278. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 8 recent study, Thomas K Duoku’s gives insight into the development of rubber in Liberia and Malaysia. He identifies the factors that have hindered Liberia’s rubber industry development, such as lack of industrial policies, value addition, finance, and political stability, and contrasts them with the factors that have enabled Malaysia’s rubber industry to flourish, such as industrial master plans, export-oriented industrialization, and public-private partnerships. He argues that Liberia should develop a rubber manufacturing plan to diversify its economy, create jobs, and increase income.12 These works collectively emphasize the significant but complex influence of the rubber trade on the African economy since the 19th centuries and speaks to general and specific commonalities in Ghana’s experince with rubber as a local resource. Rubber production in Ghana is a subject that has received some considerable scholarly attention yet the focus does not cover much of its industrial aspect or any relation to Ghana’s transport history. Even so, some historical accounts that focused on its agrarian aspect are scanty and are usually presented as peripheral to broad historical narratives. For instance, Francis Agbodeka has touched on the origins of cash crops including oil palm, cotton, rubber, coffee, cocoa, and citrus in Ghana, their rise into prominence as well as their decline thereof as part of his narrative of the economic history of Ghana.13 Agbodeka also examined colonial governments' commitment to agricultural diversification and the economic imperatives for this cause. In a similar vein Kwamina Dickson in his “Historical Geography of Ghana”, gives an overview of rubber and other cash crops such as cocoa. On the rubber industry (the 1880s to the 1930s) he presents the fluctuating fortunes of wild rubber exports and a summary of plantation rubber 12Thomas K. Duoku, A Comparative analysis of the rubber industries in Liberia and Malaysia: Lessons for industrial policy, abstract (University of Johannesburg, 2021), IV, http://hdl.handle.net/102000/0002 13 Francis, Agbodeka. An Economic History of Ghana from the Earliest Time. Accra: Ghana University Press, 1992. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://hdl.handle.net/102000/0002 9 production in the First World War setting.14 He also indicates that it was a part of diversification efforts but provides no further explications. Similarly, Reynolds has argued that efforts towards the establishment of agriculture plantations (including cotton, coffee, oil palm, and later cocoa) were slow and difficult but they ushered in significant institutional changes in Gold Coast traditional society. 15 These studies present brief overviews of the rubber industry in Ghana yet they fail to provide significant details on the rubber industry and industrial development in Ghana. Although the studies do not establish any clear connection between the rubber industry, industrial development and transport history of Ghana, they provide this work with significant indicators of the beginning and development of rubber as a cash crop. Some literature specifically on the rubber industry in Ghana focused largely on the commercial, social and economic significance of rubber and its ecological impact. This focus is tilted towards wild rubber production with little or no emphasis on plantation (large-scale) rubber cultivation for manufacturing. Indeed, the rubber industry in Ghana was of great significance in Ghana’s economic development in the nineteenth century as attested by the current literature on rubber production in Ghana. Kwame Arhin in his earlier work in 1972 on the rubber trade between Asante and the Gold Coast in the 1890s posits that the rubber trade was a prominent activity and that it was the seedbed of some present Ghanaian economic institutions.16 Raymond Dumett also shares a similar view that the rubber trade was an innovative response of Africans to the changing forces of the global market. In his work on the rubber trade of the Gold Coast and Asante in the nineteenth century, he intimates that “the export trade in wild 14 Kwamina B. Dickson, Historical Geography of Ghana (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1969), 162-165. See above 15, Edward, Reynolds. Trade and Economic Change on the Gold Coast, 1807-1874. Beccles and Colchester: Longman Groups Limited, 1974. 16 Kwame Arhin, “The Ashanti Rubber Trade with the Gold Coast in the Eighteen-Nineties”, Journal of the International African Institute, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Jan., 1972): 32-43. Check journal title University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 10 rubber occupies an important place in the nineteenth-century economic history of the Gold Coast and Asante, and the impetus which it gave to the future economic development of the country was greater than is commonly recognized” as it enabled the colony to diversify its export bill at a time when prices of other export commodities were fluctuating.17 Dumett also points to some of the earliest ecological effects of wild rubber tapping in Ghana’s forest. In another work in 1980, Arhin’s assessment of the economic and social significance of rubber production and exchange in the Gold Coast and Ivory Coast reaffirms Arhin’s earlier argument that the rubber industry, was responsible for ushering the people of west-central Ghana and the eastern Ivory Coast in the use of cash and also for bringing changes in land tenure that matched those of cocoa production and that it was based on a slave mode of production.18 The ongoing discussion thus emphasizes the significance of the rubber industry in the nineteenth century but does not emphasize the role of pneumatic tyres in these developments. The second chapter of this work demonstrates how these developments in the rubber industry were a result of the expanding pneumatic tyre industry used in motor transport in the nineteenth century. Additionally, it shows that colonial policy on restrictions on rubber products during the interwar period was a contributory factor to the tyre scarcity that affected motor transport during the 1940s. Moreover, it shows that the significance of the rubber industry was not limited only to the nineteenth century when it became the foundation for the establishment and production of locally manufactured tyres for motor transport in Ghana. Another addition to the literature on the rubber industry from the twentieth century has also examined the rubber industry from a neo-colonial perspective. One such work is Akilagpa 17 Raymond Dumett, “The Rubber Trade of the Gold Coast and Asante in the Nineteenth Century: African Innovation and Market Responsiveness”, The Journal of African History, Vol. 12, No. 1 (1971): 79-101. 18 Kwame Arhin, "The Economic and Social Significance of Rubber Production and Exchange on the Gold and Ivory Coasts, 1880-1900." Cahiers d'Études Africaines, Vol. 20(1980): 49-62. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 11 Sawyerr’s “Multinational Corporations and Development: The Case of the Rubber Industry in Ghana” which demonstrates from a dependency perspective how multinational firms perpetuate underdevelopment in the periphery through the export of capital to the metropolis. Focusing on the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company he highlights the extant conditions in Ghana that made this possible for this multinational company to establish dominance over the Bonsaso tyre project and the mechanism through which it established control over rubber production enabling the appropriation of surplus value from the enterprise.19 But as he indicated the work is based on incomplete information and views expressed are provisional and thus require a further detailed study on the subject. Nevertheless, his work discusses in detail sections of the agreement of partnership between the Firestone company and the Ghana government and some of its implications as well as consequences. This is very significant to the development of the Bonsa Tyre Company upon which this work expands. In the same vein, Emmanuel Owusu and François Ruf also hint at the domination of the rubber industry by multinational firms but posit that public policies played a major role in expanding rubber cultivation as part of the agricultural diversification process in Ghana. They indicate that a myriad of factors including regaining farmers' confidence by purchasing the product and the prospects of income generation, and credit facilities among other factors compelled farmers to join the project in South-Western Ghana.20 Despite their brief mention of the establishment of the Rubber Tyre Company by Firestone, they focus more on the development of 19 Akilagpa Sawyerr “Multinational Corporations and Development: The Case of the Rubber Industry in Ghana” in Law in the Political Economy of Public Enterprise: African Perspectives, ed. Yash Ghai, (New York, NY: International Legal Centre, 1977), 267-294. 20 Emmanuel Akwasi Owusu and François Ruf, “From Firestone to Michelin, a History of Rubber Cultivation in a Cocoa-Growing Country: Ghana”, in François Ruf and Götz Schroth eds., Economics and Ecology of Diversification; the Case of Tropical Tree Crops (Springer: New York, 2015), 179-181 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 12 rubber cultivation in Ghana highlighting major milestones and setbacks over the years and the factors responsible for these developments. Along similar lines, Keri Lambert’s article “Tapping Ghanaians”, 1957-66, shows how visions for post-colonial independence were engaged and enacted on the ground at rubber farms and factories in Nkrumah’s Ghana. This paper examines the interplay between natural resource processing and political spaces and how people fashioned ideas of citizenship and sovereignty. She concludes that the rubber project was pinned to its future target and failed to consider the process of achieving it. Also, Ghanaians exploited the nation-building mantra of the project by participating in state projects as a means of preserving some degree of personal sovereignty and security.21 This work provides pertinent discussions on the rubber industry under the Nkrumah government and hints at the beginning of the tyre company at Bonsaso which became known as Firestone Ghana Limited under the NLC government. The perspective Sawyerr presents is limited by the fact that it does not take into account the role of local participation in the Bonsa tyre project. On the contrary, Emmanuel Owusu François Ruf and Lambert demonstrate various levels of Ghanaian agency in the rubber industry and what incentives underpinned them. Lambert even goes further to question whether the Bonsa Tyre Company will be of any benefit to the ordinary Ghanaian however she does not probe any further. Lambert opens up the discussion for this work to examine which ways the Bonsa Tyre Company was beneficial to ordinary Ghanaians including motorists and the Bonsaso community. In this vein, chapters 4 and 5 contribute to the narrative by stressing the significance of the Bonsa Tyre Company to Ghana’s socio-economic development as shown by its role in Ghana’s tyre industry and the development of the Bonsa Community. 21 Keri Lambert, “Tapping Ghanaians, 1957-66” (Paper, Yale University, 2016), 1-28. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 13 Apart from discussions on the rubber industry, other literature that looks at the industrial development in Ghana and has drawn a connection between cash crops such as rubber, and cocoa and industrial development, treated these agro-industrial connections as tangential to broader political and economic developments and even sometimes it is not mentioned at all. But because the Bonsa Tyre Company was part of Ghana’s import substitution industries, this literature is important to this work to understanding the broader politico-economic settings within which the Bonsa Tyre Company emanated and thrived. For instance, Kodwo Ewusi’s work published in 1981 details the process of industrialization in Ghana from 1950-1970. This paper examines the extent to which Ghana’s expectations of industrialization with its attendant benefits have been met; and what prospects will emerge for manufacturing industries in Ghana under the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS). It suggests that the ideal industrial development should be one of dispersal to achieve a balanced development in the nation.22 Ewusi’s work thus draws attention to concerns about the spatial distribution and the currents that should dictate its directions and so enables this work to consider the spatial considerations for the siting of the Bonsa Tyre Company. An equally important aspect of Ghana’s agro-industrial drive hinges on how adding value to agrarian products can improve Ghana’s exports and how these industries are spatially distributed across the country. In a working paper published in 2014, Acka, Adjasi and Turkson highlight how the various industrialization policies in independent Ghana from the 1960s up to the 2000s promote the spatial distribution of industries away from the current over-concentration of industries within urban areas. 23 Like Ewusi this work also draws attention to examining in closer 22 Kodwo Ewusi, The Process of Industrialization in Ghana; 1950 -1975. (ISSER working paper, September, 1981),1-99, http://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/ 23 Charles Ackah, Charles Adjasi, and Festus Turkson, scooping study on the evolution of industry in Ghana, (WIDER working paper, 2014), 1-39. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 14 detail the considerations for the establishment of a rubber-tyre industry in an area such as Bonsaso. This work also gives a historical overview of industrial development in Ghana among other things. Yet similar to the preceding literature the focus does not go beyond government policies. Chapter 3 of this work therefore discusses other factors aside from government policies that emerged in determining the spatial distribution of such industries and in this specific instance, the Bonsa Tyre Company and examines whether they had any significant effect on government decisions. It is evident in this chapter the siting of a complex one as the siting of the Bonsa Tyre Company has demonstrated. It was a space for technical consideration, contending interests and concerns. On a similar trajectory, James Pickett and E. Shaeeldin in an insightful work highlighted the nature of the agro-industrial policy landscape in Ghana. They reveal that the cause of the dismal economic fortunes from the 1950s along the lines of industrialization lay mostly in internal policy, which, contrary to sound advice given by Arthur Lewis in 1953, discriminated against agriculture and increasingly inhibited market forces. Nevertheless, Ghana’s later attempt at economic recovery included a focus on agriculture and it factored in realistic exchange rates and market forces.24 Although this work skews much towards the cocoa industry it gives a bird's eye view of the forces which shaped Ghana’s agro-industrial trajectory and thus enables this work to appreciate why the Bonsa Tyre Company was preceded by investment in rubber cultivation. William F. Steel evaluates different policies by analyzing their impact on economic efficiency and capacity utilization in import substitution (IS) manufacturing industries. His work posits that Ghana adopted policies aimed at industrialization and at replacing imports with domestic production before it ran into balance-of-payments problems. In the 1960s, foreign exchange became an important constraint and Import Substitution industries experienced 24 James Pickett and E. Shaeeldin, Comparative Advantage in Agriculture in Ghana (working paper, OECD Development Centre, 1990), 1-32 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 15 stagnation and under-utilization of capacity. 25 This work examines Ghana's industrialization policies and provides an opportunity to examine how the various policies played out in the development of specific IS industries like the Bonsa Tyre Company. Also taking a look at Ghana from a structural perspective, Remi Jedwab and Robert Darko Osei’s case study investigates the causes and consequences of the lack of structural change in Ghana over the period 1960-2010.26 By examining Ghana from this perspective they bring out how changes in the agricultural, industrial and service sectors of the economy affect development and thus stimulate my thought as to how such macro-economic changes reflect in the daily socio-economic activities of firms and communities within which the various aspects of production occur. It is indicated in chapter four of this work how government actions and policies during the 1970s contributed to the decline of the Bonsa Tyre company and weakened its market position. The only work that relates closely to this study was done by Stephen Adei on “Technological Capacity and Aborted Industrialization in Ghana: The Case of the Bonsa Tyre Company.” This paper examines the performance of Bonsa Tyre Company from the 1960s through to the 1980s under the implementation of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP). It emphasizes how negligence to improve the technological capacity of the company during the Firestone years worked against the policy reforms of the SAP and the performance of the company.27 This work gives significant details on the interrelation between policy and technology in the company and emphasises some of the shortfalls of the Bonsa Tyre Company. While this work focuses more on the technological shortfall of the firm, it downplays other factors and how they contributed to the 25 William F. Steel. Import Substitution and Excess Capacity in Ghana. Oxford Economic Papers, Vol. 24, No. 2 (Jul., 1972): 212-240. 26 Remi Jedwab and Robert Darko Osei. Structural Change in Ghana 1960-2010 (working paper, IIEP,September 2012): 1-45. 27 Stephen Adei, “Technological Capacity and Aborted Industrialization in Ghana: The Case of the Bonsa Tyre Company.” World Development 18 no.11 (1990): 1501-1511. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 16 collapse of the company. While Adei’s point is valid, one can argue that the factors for the collapse of the company were multifaceted. Other factors equally contributed to its final decline and collapse. In this vein, this work for instance emphasizes how other factors such as tyre politics affected the distributive network of the company. Moreover, Adei ends his study at the commencement of initial efforts by the PNDC government to rehabilitate the Bonsa Tyre Company. This work, therefore, peruses the rehabilitation years and how developments thereof add to our understanding of the decline of the Bonsa Tyre Company and its eventual shutdown. Again he does not concern himself with accessing the impact of the company’s tyre production on the development of Ghana’s motor transport sector. This is highlighted in this study. An essential group of literature significant to our appreciation of the history of the Bonsa Tyre Company in Ghana is on road and motor transport. These works examine how transport infrastructure creates rippling socio-economic consequences even beyond its core function and provide a broader purview on how to approach the history of the Bonsa Tyre Company. Though specifically focused on road infrastructure, they significantly detail the beginnings of motor transport in the Gold Coast and are useful to understanding the early developments of what was to become Ghana’s motor transport industry. Scholars like Dickson have also highlighted the beginnings of road transportation and its development from around 1850. He discusses the colonial initiative as well as local initiatives towards road construction and the undercurrents for these actions and also highlights some of the economic benefits these roads generated especially for the cocoa farmer.28 In a similar line, Elizabeth Wrangham situates the development of road transport in the Gold Coast before the First World War period and delineates how regardless of colonial transport policy which was inclined 28Kwamina B. Dickson, "The development of road transport in southern Ghana and Ashanti since about 1850." Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana 5, no. 1 (1961): 33-42. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 17 towards railways, local initiatives led to the expansion of the road transport to the detriment of railway transport. She argues that the expansion of road transport during the war was nothing short of a road revolution which shows that the Ghanaians were not passive to the colonial experience but exploited the colonial system to their advantage.29 Samuel Ntewusu also presents a historical study of a ‘motor road’ linking the north of the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) to the south. It is concerned with the construction of a two hundred and thirty-four miles (about three hundred and seventy-eight kilometres) road linking Kumasi to Tamale via Salaga—what became popularly known in colonial discourse as ‘The Great North Road’. In doing so he interrogates the rationale for the construction of the road and the way and manner in which the road was used. This paper argues that the construction and use of the Northern Road had far-reaching implications in the socio-economic history of the Gold Coast concerning labour, trade and colonial administration.30 Dickson and Ntewusu provide insights into the development of Ghana’s road network and stimulate my thoughts to highlight how motor transport networks in Ghana also shaped the distribution network of the Bonsa Tyre Company. Other works have also looked at the emergent cultures and practices related to motor transport. Jojada Verrips and Birgit Meyer use “Kwaku’s car” in the 1990s to show the daily experiences and struggles of drivers with their vehicles. They explore the mundane as well as symbolical, material-technological and spiritual dimensions that emerge out of the use of automobiles. Thus, demonstrating why and how cars in Ghana are culturally redefined. They conclude that the pragmatic adaptations to cars and the cultures that surround car use in Ghana 29 Elizabeth Wrangham, "An African road revolution: the Gold Coast in the period of the Great War." The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History 32, no. 1 (2004): 1-18. 30Samuel Aniegye Ntewusu, "The road to development: the construction and use of 'the Great North Road' in Gold Coast Ghana." ASC Working Paper Series 114 (2014). In another work the author also focuses on highlighting the role of Northerners in the development Tudu and details the role they have played particularly in the development of transportation in Tudu as a hub of transportation in Accra. See Samuel Aniegye Ntewusu, settling in and holding on: a socio-economic history of northern traders and transporters in Accra's Tudu, 1908-2008, vol. 40 (2012). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 18 though stemming from a dire economic situation speak to tremendous ingenuity.31 Jacob O. Sarfo’s article provides a review of the existing Ghanaian ‘Tro-Tro’ transport industry and its impact on culture, socioeconomic and psychological dynamics. It explores some historic evolutions that the ‘Tro-Tro’ business has accomplished so far in Ghana. It concludes that the Tro- Tro nurtures a collective life force among the three human elements; the ‘tro-tro’ driver, mate and passengers. Thus, the ‘Tro-Tro’ drivers, mates and passengers build a system of culture that is mutually dependent. This relationship goes beyond the service provider - consumer bonds. It fosters a communal spirit among the three groups of human elements, though each has its distinct roles.32 This article points to some of the emergent cultures that surround motor transport but in this case as a transactional process. These works open up the discussion for this study to also assess how motorists related to locally manufactured tyres and distribution by the Bonsa Tyre Company. Jennifer Hart’s “Ghana on the Go” also traces the forces and changes underpinning the emergent automobile transport system in Ghana during the twentieth century. The author discusses the remarkable socio-political, socio-economic, cultural and technological changes that emerged and accompanied the use of motor transport by Ghanaians in the pursuit of their needs. She aptly characterizes the motor transport industry as an industry of scarcity and tyre shortage as greatly inimical and also hints at Nkrumah considering establishing a tyre factory. Yet the magnitude of this problem and how this was resolved by the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company was left untouched.33 31 Jojada Verrips and Birgit Meyer. "Kwaku’s car: the struggles and stories of a Ghanaian long-distance taxi-driver." In Car cultures, 153-184. (Routledge: 2020). 32 Jacob Owusu Sarfo, "‘Bone-Shakers’ and Contemporary ‘Tro-Tro’in Ghana: Implications for Traffic and Transport Psychology." Africa: History and Culture 1 (2016): 15-20. 33 Jennifer Hart, Ghana on the go: African mobility in the age of motor transportation (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2016). 145. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 19 The myriad of literature discussed above gives varying and detailed accounts of the development of motor transport in Ghana from the colonial period to the contemporary time. They focus on how the interactions with automobile technologies have shaped and been shaped by Ghanaians in their daily trajectories of life. Yet, considering that globally tyres play a tremendously important role in propelling motor vehicles or road transport, it is quite surprising that the literature on Ghana’s transport history and culture has paid little attention to the prominence of Ghana’s defunct tyre-producing company, Bonsa Tyre Company and how it adds to our understanding of Ghana’s transport history. Building on this extant literature, this study contributes to this area of study by showing the experiences of motorists and the general contribution of the company to Ghana’s transport system. It thus accentuates the significance of the tyre industry to Ghana’s automobile narratives. The Study Area; A brief history. The Bonsaso community is situated southwest of Tarkwa in the Tarkwa district of the Western region. Bonsa is known for its fertile farmlands and reliable source of water which attracted settlers to the area.34 The people did alluvial gold washing in the Bonsa River.35 Informants described a crystal clear river that was central to their livelihood; and safe for drinking, fishing and other domestic purposes.36 They were also involved in food crops such as cassava, plantain, and cocoyam, as well as cash crop cultivation such as cocoa, coconuts, oranges, and oil palm.37 34 K.J. Bansah et al., “Socioeconomic and Environmental Assessment of Informal Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Ghana,” Journal of Cleaner Production 202 (2018): 465-475. 35 Raymond Dummet, “Geological structure and the location of Gold in Ghana”, in Gold mining frontiers, African Labour and colonial capitalism in the Gold Coast, 1875-1900 (Athens, Ohio: Ohio university press. 1998),31. 36 The current state of the river is an entirely different reality from the narratives respondent had given. Its colour is a turbid brown colour which is indicative of the current activities of illegal mining in the locality and the toll it has had on the river. 37 PRAAD-Accra RG 7/1/1686. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 20 The Bonsa River divides the town into two namely Bonsaso No.1 and Bonsaso No. 2. The indigenous people (Wasa Pepesa) occupy the larger portion No.1 while the Akwapim settlers (from Larteh) occupy the smaller portion No. 2, at the Tarkwa end of the river.38 The numerical naming of the community accentuates the settlement pattern and order of settlement. It enables a clear demarcation between the two settlements and their distinct identities. The history of settlement in the area consists of two narratives, one account recounts the migration of the Pepesa indigenes to the area for farming and the other recounts that of the Larteh migrants. The account of the indigenes holds that they moved from Dompim (see the map in Fig. 1) to settle near the Bonsa River for farming. As such to this day their political allegiance and social practices are aligned with that of Dompim. It is difficult to identify what time these migrations occurred but by 1824 Bonsaso was a settled community. It was around the Bonsaso area that Sir Charles McCarthy was defeated and killed in the Battle of Nsamanko in 1824. 39 Around 1882, during the gold boom in the Wasa area, one Commander Rumsey described that a ferry was run across the Bonsa River a charge was taken for each trip and that the Bonsa community mainly consisted of huts put up by mining companies.40 The presence of the miners in the area may have attracted more people to migrate to the area. According to the account of the Akuapim settlers, they settled at the Tarkwa side of the Bonsa River for farming as well as timber business. It is also not clear what times the Akuapim migrated to the area but by the 1950s they had permanent residence at Bonsa in Atakora-Kurom with a recognized leader in the person of 38 Barnicon Property Valuation and Consultancy Services, “Valuation Report on Assets of Bonsa Tyre Company Limited,” vol. 1 (Accra, Ghana, 2003),1-2. This document was obtained from Mr. Opoku Mensah, a former worker of the Bonsa Company. 39 Government of the Gold Coast, The Gold Coast Review Vol. II. No.2. July-December (Accra: The Government Printer, 1926),169. 40 Government of the Gold Coast, The Gold Coast Review Vol II No.1. January-June (Accra: The Government Printer, 1926), 99. Commander Rumsey was instructed to investigate the route from Axim to Tarkwa. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 21 Opanin Mensa Atakora.41 Traditionally both Bonsa No1 and No2 are under Dompim Pepesa within the Wasa Fiase Tradtiontional area. Figure 1. Location of Bonsa No 1 and Bonsa No 2. Source; K.J. Bansah et al., “Socioeconomic and Environmental Assessment of Informal Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Ghana,” Journal of Cleaner Production, 469. Methodology This study is a historical work using a qualitative approach relying primarily on primary sources and complemented by secondary sources. It draws mainly on archival materials, 41PRAAD-Sekondi WRG 3/5/1907, Bonsa Timber concession. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 22 newspapers and information from oral accounts of former employees of the Bonsa Tyre Company, retired drivers and residents of the Bonsa community. Archival materials were sourced from the Ghana Public Records Administration and Archives Department (hereafter PRAAD) in Accra and Sekondi and documents from the private records of some respondents. At the national archives in Accra, documents from the record class RG 1/2 and 7/1 provided important information on industrial development in Ghana. They provided very useful information on the development of the Bonsa Tyre Factory from the beginning of its establishment. Issues raised in the files include contract agreements, financial transactions, reports on the status of the factory, challenges with its construction, the record of workers and payment reports. Class number RG 1/2/162 gave information on the state of power supply in Ghana in the early 1960s and its capacity for industrial and domestic supply. RG 1/2/163 also provide information on the Master Agreement between the Republic of Ghana and Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company. The following records, CSO 17/1 and CSO 17/2 were also informative on how British Rubber control affected the dynamics of tyres and inner tube supply in the Gold Coast in the 1940s. At the Sekondi archives, two records WRG 3/5/1907 titled Bonsa Timber Concession and WRG 24/2/292 titled 1960 Population Census of Ghana provided useful information on the Bonsa community to explain issues about the land on which the Bonsa tyre company was established. The second record enabled a comparison of the population of the Bonsa community in the 1960s with that of the 1970s census to explain demographic changes as a result of the Bonsa Tyre Company. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 23 Samuel Ntewusu has lamented how the poor state of archival record keeping in Ghana pushes important documents meant for state and institutional archives into the public domain.42 And rightly as he observed, several documents including an evaluation report on the Bonsa Tyre Company, an industrial agreement between Bonsa Tyre Company workers and the government, magazines and brochures which were supposed to be in the archives were obtained from some respondents and were very informative to explaining the development of the factory and its relation with the host community. Jennifer Hart has also emphasized the fact that Ghana’s National Archive is less productive as a source for postcolonial history particularly between 1966 and 1983 when Ghana’s political scene was very volatile. Therefore newspapers and oral accounts are essential to circumvent this peculiar challenge.43 Newspapers (both print and online) from the 1960s to the 2000s, particularly Ghanaian Times, Daily Graphic and some online news such as Ghanaweb, Washington Post, Modern Ghana and Prime News are also an essential part of this work and they provided, public experiences, opinions, and reports on local and international issues relating to the development of the Bonsa Tyre Company as well as Ghana’s motor transport development. The print newspapers were sourced from the Institute of African Studies (IAS) library at the University of Ghana. The periodicals of the Africana Section of the Balme Library of the University of Ghana, the IAS library and online sources provided a useful repository of several reports and departmental reports, which added to the details on Ghana’s transport industry and the Bonsa Tyre Company’s rehabilitation project. 42 Samuel Ntewusu, “Banana and Peanuts Archives of Ghana”, History of Africa vol. 44 (2017), 285-294. A respondent asked for money before he would release some of these documents. Apparently he was a former administrative employee and with the collapse of the company has hoarded a number of relevant document of the company. 43 Jennifer Hart, Ghana on the Go: African mobility in the age of motor transportation (Indiana University press; 2016), 25. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 24 These were complemented by oral interviews conducted with 11 respondents at Bonsaso. The sample size was determined by the availability, knowledge and lived experiences of respondents. Moreover, by the tenth interview, no new information was evident. These respondents included former workers of the Bonsa Tyre Company residents of the community and some community heads. They provided information on the activities of the tyre company as well as how the Bonsa Tyre Company affected the lives of the people during the active years of the company and how it impacted the community after its collapse. In exploring the experiences of motorists with the Bonsa Tyre Company tyres beyond the narrative of newspapers, four drivers, two retired drivers and two active drivers were also interviewed. Respondents gave information on the nature of the Bonsa Tyre Company tyres and their usage in comparison to other tyres they had used. Respondents were sampled using purposive and snowballing sampling technique. This was very important because employees of the company as well as drivers who had used the Bonsa Tyre Company tyres and services are quite difficult to identify therefore it was very useful that initial respondents referred me to other respondents who could provide the information needed. Secondary sources including books and journal articles reviewed in above were also examined to give a wider context and complement the primary information. These sources provided a rich pool of information from which various themes discussions in this work were derived, analysed and presented in the various chapters. The multiplicity of sources used was to overcome inherent limitations of such as biases in the data, gaps in the records, and the potential for misinterpretation. The pool of data from the sources were cross-verified with each other and carefully evaluated to ensure accuracy and to help identify and check errors or biases present.44 Extensive notes were taken from the archival sources, 44 See Mary L. Rampolla, “Working with sources” in A Pocket Guide to Writing in History, 9th ed, (Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s), 20-37. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 25 interviews were transcribed and analysed in connection with major debates raised in the secondary materials to answer the research questions raised in this work. Outline of Chapters Chapter one is the Introduction or Background to the research, literature review, statement of the research problem, research questions, the objectives for the research, significance and justification for the study, source and methodology, and chapter outline. Chapter two examines the historical circumstances that resulted in the setting up of the Bonsa Tyre Company whereas Chapter three focuses on the origin and establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company and its undercurrents from 1957-1969. The fourth chapter examines the running of the company to the collapse of the Bonsa Tyre Company from 1969 to the 2000s and its implications for Ghana’s transport sector. Chapter Five highlights the significance of the Bonsa Tyre Company to Ghana’s socio-economic development; the motor transport industry, the labour market and the Bonsaso community and chapter six summarises and concludes the research. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 26 CHAPTER TWO MOTOR TRANSPORT, TYRE MANUFACTURING AND RUBBER PRODUCTION IN THE GOLD COAST Introduction This chapter explores the historical antecedents and how they connect to the setting up of Bonsa Tyre Company during the 1960s. It shows the connection between Ghana’s rubber industry with tyre manufacturing and supply and the development of motor transport in Ghana. Hence, it demonstrates that not only was Ghana’s rubber industry a part of the global transport industry in the 19th century, but it also became the basis for the establishment of domestic tyre manufacturing in Ghana for motorists and thus an intricate part of the development of motor transport in Ghana. Motor vehicles have been a great invention which has revolutionized human transport and mobility. Not only has it reduced travel time, but it has also enabled comfortable and easy transportation of people and goods, ideas, and culture in ways previously unimagined. One thing that is evident in motor transport is its complex system of interconnected parts including the body, engines, brakes, tyres etc.45 Pneumatic tyres are an essential component to the establishment of the automobile mechanism. Tyres play four key functions including bearing a load (support), acting as a spring (absorption), conveying driving and braking forces (transmission), and facilitating the steering of the vehicle (turning). These are vital functions in which the tyres as part of the vehicle serve as an intermediary in establishing a mutual relationship between the vehicle and the surface of the road.46 As rightly noted by Ishikawa, without rubber, the modern-day 45 T. C. Barker, “The international history of Motor transport”, Journal of Contemporary History, vol.20 (1985), 3. 46 Yasuhiro Ishikawa, “Systematic Review of Tyre Technology”, National Museum of Nature and Science University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 27 pneumatic tyre would not exist, thus with the discovery of the technology of vulcanizing rubber and the expanding automobile industry, rubber became pivotal in the tyre manufacturing industry.47 In the Gold Coast, there were no motor vehicles until the early 1900s. However, their widespread use in Europe had a notable impact on the need for natural rubber, a key ingredient in tire manufacturing. 48 As a result, the late 19th century saw a surge in rubber prices. Consequently, the proliferation of motor vehicles not only drove up the demand for more tyres but also triggered an increased need for rubber in regions like the Gold Coast and other rubber-producing areas around the globe. Thus, an account of motor transport and tyre manufacturing cannot be divorced from rubber production. Rubber Production in the Gold Coast In the seventeenth century, wild rubber (funtumia elastica and Landophia owariensis) was in abundance in parts of the tropical forest in the high rainfall zones of south-western Ghana and the relatively wet high forest region of Asante.49 It had several practical uses in the local economy. When tapped the gummy latex was used to seal broken calabash, leaking canoes, earthenware and wooden receptacles.50 From the late 1800s rubber production took a firm footing in the Gold Coast in response to spikes in demand for raw rubber in the global market because of the expansion of Vol.16, (2011), 3. It is significant to note that rubber forms about 19 percent and 34 percent in passenger vehicle tyres and truck tyres respectively. US Tyre Manufacturing Association, Whats in a Tire, https://www.ustires.org/whats-tire-0 47 Yasuhiro, “Systematic Review of Tyre Technology”,13-14. Vulcanized rubber involved the process of making rubber molecules to bond together resulting in a more elastic property. This process was discovered by C. Goodyear in 1839. 48Y. Harita, H. Kondo and Y. Ozawa, “Natural Rubber for the Tyre Industry” in Chemistry, Manufacture and Application of natural Rubber (Woodhead Publishing Limited; 2014), 325. 49 Dickson, A historical geography of Ghana, 162. 50 Agbodeka, An Economic History of Ghana, 43-84. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh https://www.ustires.org/whats-tire-0 28 pneumatic tyre production for motor vehicles. This technology began in Britain as an upgrade on solid rubber tyres for carriages, and bicycles and later in the 1920s larger tires were introduced for the then-expanding motor vehicles industry. It must be noted that many firms were set up for the rubber trade in West Africa but the enormity of Ghana’s rubber industry is underscored by the concentration of seventeen (17) of these firms established and registered in Ghana by 1910.51 Rubber production in the Gold Coast increased rapidly to meet the demand, rising from 0.05 tonnes in 1880 to 691.57 tonnes in 1886. By 1892 rubber had surpassed palm oil as Gold Coast’s leading agricultural export. 52 The south-western region in particular has been and remains a hotspot for rubber production in the country because of its suitable ecological conditions. Kwame Arhin indicates that the earliest supply of crude rubber came from peasant supply in the immediate Gold Coast hinterlands in areas including Akim, Krepi and Wassa.53 It ushered in significant economic and institutional changes to the people of west-central Ghana in the use of cash and also for bringing changes in land tenure that matched those of cocoa production. The industry's contribution to the growth of the cash economy included the lease and grant of land to strangers for the establishment of rubber-producing villages; the practice of share-cropping; and the widespread use of slaves in the production and transportation of rubber for sale on the coast. 54The rubber industry, therefore, played an important socio-economic role although it has always been treated as a minuscule industry. Notwithstanding its significance, it is quite puzzling with a tinge of irony that rubber for the manufacture of tyres, like other cash crops was transported on foot. 51 Agbodeka, an Economic History of Ghana from the Earliest Time, 43-84. 52 Ibid. 53 Kwame Arhin, “The Ashanti Rubber Trade with the Gold Coast in the Eighteen-Nineties”, Journal of the International African Institute, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Jan., 1972), 32-43. 54 Kwame Arhin, "The Economic and Social Significance of Rubber Production and Exchange on the Gold and Ivory Coasts, 1880-1900." Cahiers d'Études Africaines, Vol. 20(1980), 49-62. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 29 Tyres and Carriages in the Gold Coast This subsection discusses the use of other non-vehicular tyres in the Gold Coast. The focus is on animal and human-drawn carriages. This discussion is important as it lays the foundation for discussing in much detail the introduction and use of pneumatic tyres following the introduction of motor vehicles. Vehicle tyres as we know them today have been a gradual improvement on the wheels used for wagons and carriages in Europe eventually leading to the application of solid rubber tyres and later the invention of the pneumatic tyres. The Gold Coast and neighbouring Western African territories although having been fairly familiar with wheeled transport even in the 1800s, appear to have not invented or adapted or made much use of it. For instance, in 1841 the Methodist Missionary Society delivered a wheeled carriage to Kumase as a present to the king and in the 1830s and 1840 British officials and local merchants kept wheeled carriages which were drawn by men.55 Although scholars have not been unanimous on what exactly led to the seeming absence of wheeled technology, several reasons have been raised in an attempt to explain this situation including, lack of initiative, lack of economic conditions, absence of beasts of burden, and the prohibitive cost of creating and managing roads for wheeled transport. 56 Notwithstanding the many reasons, we may agree with Law that it was not an issue of an inability or the lack of interest to adopt wheeled vehicles but it most often had no effective practical usefulness at the period. In this vein, rubber in the Gold Coast had no application in such an industry of less utility but was useful as an export product from the nineteenth century. This was also in line with the British colonial policy of exploiting the colonies as a source of raw materials. Also as noted earlier many of the European firms established on the Gold Coast invested their energies in the wild 55 Robin Law, “Wheeled Transport in Pre-Colonial West Africa.” Journal of the International African Institute, vol. 50 No. 3 (1980), 254. 56 Ibid. 249-262. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 30 rubber trade and a few others in plantation rubber cultivation. Thus European rubber firms in the Gold Coast did not engage in rubber processing for tyre manufacturing and therefore the transfer of such technology was highly unlikely. Even in the export trade, the fortunes of the rubber export in the Gold Coast were not remarkable from the first decade of the twentieth century to the early mid-twentieth century, it was a period of uneven development as a result of the First and Second World wars and prohibitive colonial policies. Indeed, rubber production until the 20th century was a local initiative in the hands of local wild rubber producers and a few private and European firms. Until 1941 when the colonial government launched a rubber production campaign, it had not shown any significant interest in promoting rubber production though there were some experiments with rubber by the Department of Agriculture. Even so, the colonial administration’s intervention was more of a move to facilitate its war agenda during the Second World War. During the war, the automobile industry focused on the production of military trucks such as Jeeps and war aircraft.57 These were used to transport soldiers and for military supplies. Because these vehicles needed tyres to run, the British sought to gather as much rubber supply as it could get from all possible sources in its colonies including the Gold Coast for tyre manufacturing. This demand led to increased prices during the Second World War and witnessed a resuscitation of the rubber industry in the Gold Coast, yet the Board of Trade in the United Kingdom announced it would no longer purchase rubber after the end of the war. The British Colonial government discouraged its production in the Gold Coast and other colonies after the war as a move to stabilize the world prices of rubber.58 The commercial market for rubber export in Ghana was thus closed. Rubber producers could no longer find a market for their produce 57 J. Nyamwange and D. Nyamwang, “Major Innovations in Transportation: Evolution of Automobiles”, International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, Vol. 4, No. 5 (March 2014), 42-42. 58 Lambert, Tapping Ghanaians, 7. According to Lambert, Britain had invested much in the Malayan rubber and sought to eliminate any form of competition from other colonies. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 31 largely because it was dependent on the export market and domestic uses of the rubber were not commercial enough to sustain the industry. From the foregoing, it can be inferred that even though the evolution of tyre technology as a gradual improvement of wheels used for wagons and carriages and had developed to integrate natural rubber; the local use of rubber in Ghana had no prospects for application of rubber to any independent indigenous rotary or wheeled transport. There were no attempts by European firms or the colonial government to establish any local rubber-tyre manufacturing industry on the Gold Coast using local rubber even though motor transports had taken root in the Gold Coast by the end of the Second World War. It was a typical situation of raw rubber extraction for export and import of “manufactures of rubber” including vehicle tyres.59 This was certainly not circumstantial since the colonial government’s policy on the Gold Coast was largely against manufacturing within the colony.60 Motor Vehicles and Tyres in the Gold Coast The Gold Coast’s experience with tyres came with the introduction of motor vehicles to Ghana during the 1900s. The first motor car to be introduced in Ghana was a symbol of Western modernity in West Africa and luxury for Governor Nathan in 1902. Although some colonial officials saw the potential of using motor vehicles to facilitate colonial administration, the administration was rather enthused about railway transport.61 Yet by the 1930s, the motor car industry was booming under the initiative of local transport entrepreneurs at a remarkable speed. In 1921, there were 586 lorries and 214 cars in Accra alone; in the rest of the Eastern Province, 59 Colonial Reports Annual, 1923-1924.Periodicals, Balme Library, University of Ghana, Legon. 60 Agbodeka, Economic History of Ghana, 134-135. 61 The British colonial government was more interested in promoting railway transport in the Gold Coast than motor transport. The government was concerned with controlling road transport to reduce competition with the government-owned railway. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 32 there were 303 cars and 860 lorries.62 Also, between 1927 and 1928, 1,100 cars and 4,250 lorries were licensed and by 1930, 4,987 vehicles were licensed in the Gold Coast Colony. 63 By 1932 there were 4,141 commercial motor vehicles and 1,618 private cars and taxis registered on the Gold Coast. By the end of the 1930s, there were over 5,501 commercial vehicles and 2,076 private cars and taxis.64 The direct implication of this soaring number of vehicles was that tyres were required to run them. In the absence of local manufacturing, these were imported just as the vehicles. Indeed, the constant addition to the mileage of roads in the Gold Coast was naturally accompanied by increased importations of motor vehicles and tyres.65 The expansion of motor transport and the challenge of keeping a stable supply of tyres made tyre servicing, repair, and maintenance essential in the Gold Coast. This was significant because road construction in the 1930s was entirely designed and built to accommodate motor vehicles equipped with pneumatic tyres and the colonial administration banned the use of solid rubber tyres which could affect the quality of the road 66 This meant the requirements and problems that came with pneumatic tyres including, air refills, punctures and worn-out tyres became an avenue of employment for locals. Vulcanizing became an essential service in the motor vehicle business undertaken by local entrepreneurs and it played a significant role as a source of livelihood for many as well as a pivotal intervention in tyre use, reducing tyre import in the Gold Coast and facilitating motor transport. Records of motor vehicle imports and tyre imports in the various annual colonial reports give significant evidence that from the 1930s, local vulcanizers 62 Colonial Reports Annual, 1922-1923. 63 Colonial Annual report, 1927-1928,27 64 Hart, Ghana on the go, 47-48, 70-71. 65 Colonial Annual report, 1926-1927. 66 Colonial Annual Report, 1927-1928, 26. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 33 helped to prolong the life of tyres and reduced imports (see fig. 1).67 Moreover drivers also resorted to the use of old tyres to supplement their new ones. Fig.1. Total Motor vehicle imports vs. Total tyre imports, 1931-1939. Figure 2. This data was extracted from Colonial Annual Reports 1931- 1939. Source: https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/ilharvest/Africana/Books2011-05/5530214/ Regardless of the services available to motorists to prolong or supplement tyre supply, colonial policies also affected tyre supply within the Gold Coast. In 1941 when the British rubber in Malaya came under Japanese attack all effort was made to accumulate as much rubber supply as possible from all rubber-producing colonies. This was what manifested in the colonial administration’s promotion of rubber on the Gold Coast during the Second World War. In 1941 a Rubber Control Board was set up to advise and control how British rubber could be used to facilitate the war efforts.68 From this point, the general policy was that all rubber and rubber 67Colonial Annual Report, 1929-1930, 17. 68 UK, parliamentary Debates, House of Commons, Rubber Control, 03 February 1942, 1126 (Mr. Parker, member for Romford). https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1942/feb/03/rubber-control 970 1,861 494 1,515 1,498 3,790 484 180 186 186 186 186 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 1931-32 1932-33 1933-34 1935-36 1936-37 1937-38 1938-39 Motor vehicles Tyres import University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/ilharvest/Africana/Books2011-05/5530214/ 34 products including tyres and inner tubes were to be employed at full capacity towards war efforts. The Rubber Control Board regulated the purchase and export of tyres to colonies.69 Consequently, this affected tyre supply by official colonial government suppliers such as crown agents in the colonies. From 1942, even tyres for government officials were strictly regulated and were only to be mounted on vehicles used in activities that would contribute to the war efforts. Thus, tyres for cars in the Gold Coast were in limited quantities.70 It is clear from the foregoing that the tyre problem in the Gold Coast and its impact on the motor transport industry had everything to do with the British rubber control strategy. Another contributing factor for these limited quantities was that the tyres were not made for local climatic conditions and, therefore, they deteriorated quickly, so stocks that were not purchased quickly stood the risk of becoming unusable.71 Tyre dealers were thus cautious not to import quantities that go to waste and affect their investment. This left the tyre industry at the mercy of local tyre dealers, mostly Syrian firms who took advantage of the limited supply and their monopoly to charge higher prices in the Gold Coast. For instance, in 1942, a letter from the Forest Department of Koforidua to the Commissioner of the Eastern Province lamented an increment in the price of tyres for one of their timber lorries. The initial arrangement with the Syrian tyre dealer was to buy the tyre at £7.10 but the next morning the dealer increased the price to £8. Eventually, the government was compelled to implement price control of tyres in the Gold Coast as well as other colonies such as Nigeria and Nyansaland.72 69GH/PRAAD CSO/ 17/1/130, Rubber tyre and Tubes- Application for permit to purchase 1942-1943. 70 Ibid 71 GH/PRAAD CSO 17/2/51, Motor vehicles, spare parts oil, etc. required by government departments 1938-1939. 72 PRAAD-Accra CSO/ 17/1/129, Motor tyres and inner tubes control of prices 1942. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 35 The growing need for motor transport in Ghana as a result of the expansion of Ghana’s economy led to a considerable increase in various types of motor vehicles for the movement of goods and people from the 1950s onward.73 For instance, the total number of private vehicles had increased from 13,394 in 1956 to 27,270 in 1965,74 indicating an average growth rate of 8.3% per annum. Again, official statistics indicated that about 3,800 of the 27,400 cars registered in 1965 were taxis generally commuting in towns with about 1,400 of them based in Accra only.75 There was also the establishment of bus services run by municipal councils as well as the State Transport Corporation in Accra-Tema, Sekondi-Tarkoradi and Kumasi. But the transportation of people and goods, especially, market produce, from rural areas to villages and towns was predominantly done by smaller buses either 15-25 passenger Mercedes or Austin minibuses or mammy wagons capable of taking about 20-30 people or 1-3 tons of goods. In this combined category there was an increase from 8,451 in 1956 to 9,821 in 1965 reaching higher quantities of about 10, 000 cars in 1960/61 and 1964. Cars used solely for the transport of goods including vans and pickups also increased from 5,772 in 1956 to 6,964 in 1965, thus showing an increase of 1,192. 76 The above statistics indicate a progressively expanding motor vehicle industry, adding to its registry by the year. Yet a challenge within this vibrant sector remained the nagging presence of the shortages of spare parts, fuel and most significantly tyres from the colonial period to the early post-independence period. This situation held dire consequences in the transport of goods 73 The demand for motor transport in Ghana surged from the 1950s onwards due to economic growth, and other factors including urbanization, infrastructural development, and perhaps changing consumer preferences. As the country's economy expanded, there was a greater need for efficient transportation systems to facilitate the movement of goods and people. Urbanization further intensified the demand for motor vehicles to connect different regions and transport materials and products. Additionally, improved road networks made motor transport a more viable and convenient option. The rising incomes and changing lifestyles of Ghanaians also fuelled the desire for personal mobility, making motor vehicles an essential means of transportation for various purposes. 74 Ghana Highway Study, interim Report Apendixes, C1, C2, C3. 75 Ibid 76 Ibid University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 36 and people and consequently for systemic political, economic, and social development. Even though by 1960 there were two companies, Ghana Tyre Services Ltd in Accra and Vacu-Lug (WA) Ltd. in Sekondi which were listed in the directory of enterprises in Ghana to have been active in the manufacture of tyres and inner tubes. These companies were in reality specialised in tyre rethreading and related services and seem not to have had the capacity to serve Ghana’s tyre demand.77 For instance, in 1964 the lack of spare parts and tyres for vehicles hindered the relocation of affected residents by the Volta River Authority during the implementation of the Volta River Project. Out of the 400 vehicles hired by the VRA only half of these were usable because there were no tyres or spare parts to get them repaired. Moreover, maintaining the VRA’s own 100 vehicles was only successful after a frantic search for tyres and spares.78 Thus with an expanding motor transport saddled with a tyre shortage, a tyre manufacturing factory needed to be considered in Nkrumah’s industrial development project. In a nut shell, the establishment of a local tyre manufacturing company in Ghana Bonsa Tyre Company was an attempt to harness local rubber resources for tyre manufacturing during the early 1960s. As an essential ingredient in tyre manufacturing rubber production had a foothold in the local economy since the 19th century, feeding into the global supply for rubber tyre manufacturing. The southwestern parts of Ghana, in particular, had proven most suitable for rubber cultivation therefore when feasibility studies showed quite accurately the possibility of a commercial scale production for export and most importantly for industrialization, it fitted neatly into Nkrumah’s agro-industrialization plan to establish a local tyre manufacturing company in 77 Directory of Enterprises, Government statistician’s office (Accra: Ghana, February 1960), ii. These companies engaged in the process of tyre rethreading and related services for the reuse of worn-out tyres. The process involved removing the worn-out outer section of the tyre (thread) and reattaching a new fold for better tyre-to-road traction. 78Rowena M. Lawson, An Interim Economic Appraisal of the Volta River Resettlement Scheme, University of Ghana Volta Basin Research Project Technical Report (Ghana,1966),6. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 37 Ghana. Substantial effort was put first into commercial rubber cultivation intended to feed the tyre company by the beginning of its production as well as for export. It can thus be argued that though not at the same magnitude as in the nineteenth century, rubber had regained an important status; as a local resource serving as the basis for the establishment of Ghana’s tyre company with its attendant ramifications for the transport industry after the 1966 coup. An equally important development for the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company was the booming motor transport industry which had taken root in Ghana. Yet at its inception to the 1930s the industry had been constrained by tyre scarcity as a result of factors such as British rubber control strategy, and limited tyre imports due to unsuitable for local climatic conditions which affected tyres storage. From the 1960s the motor transport sector kept expanding yet the problem of shortage; of spare parts, fuel and most significantly tyres persisted. Eventually, by this time two tyre retreading companies, Ghana Tyre Services Ltd in Accra and Vacu-Lug (WA) Ltd in Sekondi were providing services for tyres and inner tubes. But in as much as these services may have played a significant role in keeping vehicles on the move they were largely inadequate in resolving the problem; the more reason for the government to invest rather in establishing the Bonsa Tyre Company was to cut down Ghana’s tyre imports. The trajectory of the Bonsa Tyre Company however was significantly altered by the change of government leading to its sale to the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company in 1967. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 38 CHAPTER THREE THE ORIGINS AND ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BONSA TYRE COMPANY 1957-1969. Introduction The establishment of a local tyre manufacturing factory in Ghana entailed several considerations but also attracted many interests and concerns. State Officials factored many considerations and concerns to ensure the establishment of the project and other interested parties related to the development of the company per their unique circumstances. This chapter discusses these key developments in the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company to highlight the undercurrents in the establishment of the company and what it meant to the parties involved. Ewusi has indicated how the establishment of industrial firms holds significant implications within areas of its establishment and has advocated that ideal industrial development should be dispersed to achieve a balanced development.79 Acka, Adjasi and Turkson have also shown that various industrialization policies in independent Ghana from the 1960s promoted the distribution of industries away from over-concentration within urban areas.80 While the siting of the Bonsa Tyre Company seems to be in line with this trajectory, the process was far more complex; the establishment of the Bonsa Tyre Company was a space for technical considerations and practicality as well as contending interests and concerns. 79 Ewusi, The Process of Industrialization, 1-99. 80Ackah, Adjasi, and Turkson, Scooping study on the evolution of industry, 1-39. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 39 Bonsa Tyre Company – The Antecedents In the early 1950s, there were considerable changes in Ghana’s political landscape which had repercussions on the political economy. Kwame Nkrumah became the Leader of government Business in 1951 and later in 1957 the prime minister of the newly independent nation. Arguably, the early 1950s could be said to have been generally prosperous, yet by the late 1950s, Ghana’s economy, according to Tony Killick: still bore the hallmark of colonization…It was still essentially a rural economy, with more than half its GDP originating in agricultural and related activities. It was a classic case of an open economy, heavily dependent on international commerce. Trade and payments were largely unregulated and tariff levels were generally low. Most capital goods and many kinds of consumer goods had to be imported, and exports were dominated by cocoa which was highly volatile but generally provided about three-fifths of total foreign exchange earnings.81 The Nkrumah administration sought to change the economy from its colonial structure. So, from 1957 Nkrumah's economic policy was centred on a vision of economic modernization: the "great push" principally involving a significant investment effort, a plan centred around an industrialization drive, emphasizing import substitution, structural change, and a less open economy, to be mostly implemented by the state.82 Motor vehicle tyres were one of these imports to be manufactured locally particularly to resolve the nagging problem of tyre shortage which characterised the motor transport sector. For this reason, the government took steps during the 1950s through investments in rubber production with an intent to produce enough latex to feed an intended tyre manufacturing industry that was earmarked to be established later. 81 Tony Killick, Development Economics in Action A study of economic policies in Ghana (Routledge: New York, 2010), 3. 82 Ibid,2. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.ghUniversity of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 40 The establishment of a local rubber tyre manufacturing factory in Ghana was thus preceded by an investment in the needed raw materials to ensure the availability of raw rubber for the tyre manufacturing factory. Indeed, the Gold Coast Industrial Development Corporation recruited a consultant in 1956 to investigate the feasibility of rubber production and manufacturing. At the end, the rainy, forested parts of south-western Ghana was the optimal location for rubber tree cultivation.83 Consequently, when Ghana eventually attained independence in 1957, Nkrumah’s Convention People’s Party (CPP) government keenly focused on rubber cultivation as part of efforts to diversify the cash crop economy and boost its industrialisation agenda. Already abreast with the country's overdependence on imports, the CPP government made a substantial investment to develop other crops for export and to feed state-owned import substitution industries to cut down its imports. The government thus intended to establish a rubber tyre manufacturing factory to resolve the tyre shortage within the expanding local motor transport economy in Ghana. In this bid to meet local requirements, wider consultations had to be made. For instance, the Ministry of Industries sought the expert opinion of a Chief Transport Officer of the Government Transport Department on the type of tyre sizes the factory should consider in its production agenda to suit local demands.84 The Chief Transport Officer recommended that a total of 450 daily outputs of various sizes of tyres be considered. In 1957, the Agricultural Development Corporation (ADC), together with a Danish firm, R. T. Briscoe, started a 5,000-acre Rubber Estate at Dixcove in the Western region and by 1961 83 Lambert, Tapping Ghanaians, 2. 84 GH/PRAAD/ RG /7/1/1638, Letter form Chief Transport officer to Ministry of industries dated 18th July 1962 t