In order to guarantee that the state receives the most advantages, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has revealed that the government is giving value addition in the area of natural resources top priority.
He said that in order to guarantee that Ghanaians play larger roles in the exploitation of these resources, the government is also bolstering local engagement and local content.
He argues that this is crucial given that the majority of the world's natural riches are found in the world's poorest nations.
President Akufo-Addo stated during his keynote speech at the Natural Resources Stakeholder Dialogue in Accra on Thursday, May 11, 2023, that 60% of the world's severely poor lived in sub-Saharan Africa, with the majority of the continent's resource-rich nations ranking among the world's poorest nations.
These nations include the countries with the largest mineral reserves in the world, the largest producers of cobalt, industrial diamonds, and copper, as well as the countries with the largest reserves of bauxite. They also hold enormous deposits of iron ore, diamonds, and bauxite.
The worst part is that many of the locations where these resources are found seem to be among the world's most underdeveloped. For instance, in our nation, Obuasi, which formerly housed the biggest gold mine in the whole world, is still entirely undeveloped. The situation is identical to that of other locations, including Tarkwa, Prestea, Wassa, and Bibiani, which have long been popular with travelers and seekers of fortune.
The President claims that a number of factors are to blame for this, including inadequate and shortsighted negotiations with businesses that exploit these natural resources, corruption, incompetence, and political instability, the failure to put the necessary framework in place to establish the highest end of the extractive industry's value chain, and extensive tax and royalty exemptions, among others.
He claimed that, as a result, mining firms have made exceptional profits at the expense of the owners of these minerals.
After centuries of mining, he emphasized, Africa still retains over 30% of the world's mineral reserves, with even higher concentrations of gold, diamonds, bauxite, and manganese, but their contribution to socioeconomic development has been mediocre at best.
"With all of these resources, we ought to have become the world's richest continent. The irony is that Africa continues to be the world's poorest continent.
"We must not make the same errors again. While it is necessary for mining firms to turn a profit, he added, "this must not be done at the expense of the lands and the people who supply these resources.
President Akufo-Addo emphasized the need for these governments to utilize their natural resources for sustainable development, which calls for resource extraction that does not harm the environment.
Samuel Abu Jinapor, the minister of lands and natural resources, promised in his speech that the government will continue to work with all parties involved to build a sustainable and value-added natural resources sector. based on openness, honesty, and the highest degree of good faith for the benefit of Ghanaians, who are the genuine proprietors of these resources.
He contends that managing natural resources should focus on sustainability, environmental preservation, averting climate change, and maximizing returns for resource owners rather than merely protecting and exploiting them.
"As a result, we have been acting in accordance with President Akufo-Addo's directives over the past few years to ensure the effective, efficient, and sustainable management of our natural resources, even, and perhaps most significantly, implementing policies intended to retain the value chain of these resources in-country," the statement reads.
He expressed optimism that, via the dialogue, a roadmap to sustainably manage Ghana's natural resources and add value will be mapped out.
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