Terra Industries says it is building Africa’s largest drone factory in Ghana

Terra Industries, Africa’s most-funded defence-technology startup, is building a 34,000-square-foot drone factory in Accra, Ghana, that the company says will become the continent’s largest when it becomes operational in June 2026 and its first manufacturing expansion outside Nigeria.

The Accra plant, named Pax-2, more than doubles the footprint of Terra’s flagship 15,000-square-foot factory in Abuja and targets an annual output of 50,000 units by 2028. Pax-2 comes as al-Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates escalate drone warfare across the Sahel, a threat that has outpaced the counter-drone capabilities of most African militaries.

Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), the al-Qaeda coalition in Mali and Burkina Faso, conducted at least 89 drone operations between 2023 and 2025, and Islamic State Sahel Province struck Niamey International Airport with suicide drones in January 2026.

“The only way Africa can have lasting peace is by uniting to build sovereign defence, not by relying on foreign security architecture,” Nathan Nwachuku, Terra’s co-founder and chief executive, stated in a statement, adding that Ghana was selected for its talent pool and “political will to become a serious defence exporter.”

The facility will create 120 engineering jobs and produce three of Terra’s aerial systems: the Archer VTOL, a long-range surveillance and strike platform; the Iroko UAV, for rapid tactical deployment; and Kama, a newly announced interceptor drone capable of 300 kilometres per hour that is designed for counter-drone defence.

Founded in 2024 by Nwachuku and Maxwell Maduka, Terra has raised $34 million across two rounds in 2026, making it the most-funded defence-tech startup on the continent. A $11.75 million round led by 8VC in January was followed weeks later by a $22 million follow-on led by Lux Capital, with participation from Flutterwave chief executive Olugbenga Agboola’s Resilience17 Capital.

The company sells defence hardware like drones that come with its proprietary ArtemisOS software on a recurring-fee basis, modelled on US defence primes Anduril and Palantir. It says it already protects roughly $11 billion in assets across eight African countries, including hydropower plants, lithium mines and oil facilities.

The Ghana expansion follows a February memorandum of understanding between Terra and the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria, the state-run defence arm of the Nigerian Armed Forces, to establish a joint venture for local assembly and training.

Executed under the DICON Act 2023, which permits the corporation to pursue public-private partnerships, the agreement integrated Terra into Nigeria’s formal defence manufacturing structure. The company also appointed Nnamdi Chife, a counter-insurgency specialist, as Vice President of Military Relations.

Eleven African countries have now experienced drone attacks from non-state actors, with armed groups repurposing cheap commercial drones by attaching improvised explosive devices.

Sahelian armies have invested heavily in offensive Turkish drones in response, and Mali operates at least 17 Bayraktar TB2s, while Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have all added the more advanced Akıncı, but counter-drone defences have lagged.

The Institute for Security Studies has noted that the region lacks the means to detect and neutralise small, low-flying commercial drones, leaving critical infrastructure exposed. Terra is positioning Kama to fill that gap.

Construction on Pax-2 is in its final phase, with the facility expected to be fully operational by the end of June 2026, the company said.

Whether Terra can convert its funding lead into durable government contracts, particularly with the Confederation of Sahel States, which has cut ties with ECOWAS and is actively procuring drone systems, will test the company’s pitch that African defence buyers will choose a homegrown prime over established foreign suppliers.