Cabinet has approved a policy for the use of local building materials in the construction industry. The move, government believes will not only help in reducing the cost of construction but also make use of local materials including pozzolana. A statement signed by the Minister for Information, John Tia Akologu, said the implementation of the policy would start with the use of available local materials for the construction of public buildings such as schools, government offices and public hospitals. “This is a major policy initiative of the Mills administration and the details will be announced in the 2011 National Budget”, Mr. Akologu added. Mr. Akologu says Cabinet at its last sitting also discussed the resumption of operations of the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) and directed the Minister for Energy to “develop a roadmap for the implementation of the integrated aluminium industry, take the necessary steps to obtain the full documentation on the ownership of the company and liaise with the Minister for Finance & Economic Planning to address the fiscal issues inherent in the proposal.” Source: Information Ministry