Drone Startup Builds Factory in Ghana as Insurgents Drive Demand

Iroko UAV first response drone assembly at the Terra Industries factory in Abuja, Nigeri.

Photographer: Dawali David Exodus/Bloomberg

Terrahaptix Inc., a Nigerian drone-making startup, will open its first factory abroad in Ghana, where it will build mid-range pilotless aircraft and defense systems in response to increasing Islamist-militant activity in West Africa.

The facility in Ghana’s capital, Accra, will serve as the firm’s primary regional manufacturing base for its drone and counter-drone systems, the company said in a statement, on Monday. The announcement comes after the firm raised $34 million from investors such as Joe Lonsdale and Lux Capital.