Source: newsthemegh.com/MLNR
FULL SPEECH BELOW:
Ghana’s High Commissioner to China;
Chief Executive Officers;
Captains of the Mining Industry;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
On behalf of the President of the Republic of Ghana, H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, I want to thank you all, sincerely, for making time to join us this afternoon for this Country Promotion Session for Ghana, which is dubbed, “The Ghana Day.”
I, also, want to thank the organisers, the China Mining Association, and all its partners, for the opportunity to showcase Ghana through this platform.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we have chosen as our theme for this Session “Leveraging a Century of Mining to Enhance Value Addition for the Development of Ghana.” Ghana has a long history of mining, predating the arrival of the first Europeans on our land in the fifteenth (15th) century, and for well over a hundred years, the mining sector has been the pillar of Ghana’s modern-day national economy. Today, there are some sixteen (16) large scale mining operations in the country, with fourteen (14) engaged in gold mining and the other two (2) engaged in bauxite and manganese. We, also, have diamonds, which we produce from artisanal and small scale mining, but with the capacity to increase to large scale.
Apart from these minerals, we have proven deposits of lithium, iron ore, nickel, zinc, chromium, copper, cobalt, lead, columbite and tantalite, as well as industrial minerals, such as Clay, Feldspar, Limestone, Salt, Granites, Silica Sand and Kaolin. We are, also, endowed with the raw materials for the production of activated carbon, which is used in gold production. There are enormous opportunities for investment in all these minerals, throughout the entire value chain, as well as opportunities for investment in mine support services.
The policy of the Government of Ghana for the development of the mining industry has been anchored on three main pillars, with the overarching goal of unleashing prosperity for our people, in an environment that is equitable to all stakeholders.
Firstly, diversification of our mineral resource base to exploit the range of minerals that can be responsibly and viably mined, including a number of critical minerals required for the green energy transition. The Ghana Geological Survey Authority has conducted considerable geological investigations into these minerals, and data is available to assist investors in making investment decisions. Investors who undertake exploration are guaranteed the first right of refusal for mining.
Particularly, the Government of Ghana has identified the development of green minerals as a strategic metal development. Government is, therefore, seeking strategic partnerships with the private sector for the exploitation of these minerals. Early this year, our Cabinet approved a policy for the exploitation and management of these minerals. These include increased royalty, increased State and Ghanaian participation, and enhanced local content and local participation, including listing on the Ghana Stock Exchange, as well as value addition and beneficiation. But, also, significantly, investment incentives and the assurance of optimal return on investment.
Based on this Policy, last week, we granted a Mining Lease to Atlantic Lithium, a company listed on the Australian and London Stock Exchanges, to commence construction, subject to parliamentary ratification, for the mining of lithium, after the company successfully completed exploratory works and feasibility studies. Available data shows large deposits of lithium from the northern part of the country to the south, and investors are welcome to partner with Government for the exploitation of these minerals.
The second pillar is beneficiation and value addition to minerals produced in our country, to ensure a mutually beneficial situation for both Government and investors. Again, the Government of Ghana has been working to create the operating vehicles to partner with the private sector to promote value addition.
We have, therefore, for example, established the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC), and the Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation (GIISDEC), both state agencies, to promote and develop integrated aluminium and iron and steel industries in the country.
With an estimated bauxite resource base of nine hundred million metric tonnes (900,000,000Mt) in Ghana, with the potential to produce in excess of ten million metric tonnes (10,000,000Mt) per annum, and with over one point five (1.5) billion tonnes of iron ore with an average grade of forty percent (40%) iron oxide, there are huge potential for investors in these industries, through our state agencies, GIADEC and GIISDEC.
The final pillar is local content and local participation, to ensure that Ghanaians, who are by law the owners of our mineral resources, benefit from the mining industry. But we do this in a manner that is not detrimental to the interest of investors; for we recognise that investors are our natural partners working towards the same goal; that is, the exploitation of the mineral resources for our collective benefit.
In acknowledgement of the critical importance of human resource capacity, Government has built credible training institutions which have produced the manpower for the sector in Ghana, with major spillover to virtually all mining economies, globally.
We have, also, prioritised improving the business environment through regulatory reforms, to reduce bureaucracies and bottlenecks associated with doing business in Ghana. These have led to the introduction of a Mineral Cadastral Administration System (MCAS) to improve mineral licensing administration. This System, together with the online application for mineral rights, improved access to information, and transparency in administration, has improved the ease of doing business in the mining industry in Ghana.
Our laws, also, have several provisions that make the mining sector in Ghana investor friendly. These include, stability clauses that insulate investors from changes in laws and policies after the acquisition of their mineral rights; respect for the sanctity of contracts and accrued rights; capitalisation of expenditure on reconnaissance and prospecting; exemption from the payment of import duties for plants and machinery imported for mineral operations; and transferability of capital.
Additional benefits include the exemption of staff from the payment of income tax on furnished accommodation at mine sites; immigration quota in respect of approved number of expatriate personnel; and personal remittance quota for expatriate personnel free from tax.
The fiscal regime, which, also, includes a twenty percent (20%) straight line capital allowances along with a five-year loss carry forward provision, is designed to support mining projects whilst optimising Government’s share of revenues for the development of a vibrant industry.
To ensure the availability of domestic partnership for foreign investors, Government has, again, established by an Act of Parliament, the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), as Ghana’s sovereign minerals fund, to serve as a Strategic Lever for Investments associated with Ghana’s minerals and mining sector. With a strong emphasis on its corporate governance, MIIF has been able to establish itself as the local co-investor whose operations and involvement de-risks investments for other market players, as its recent investment in Atlantic Lithium shows.
The Chief Executive Officer of MIIF will be addressing you shortly and you will have the opportunity to engage him as you plan to consider investing in Ghana. After his presentation, we will allow some of the Chinese company’s working in Ghana, particularly, Shandong Gold Group, Chifeng Gold Group, and Ningxia Tianyuan Manganese Industry Group, to share their experiences with you.
Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, Ghana has a very stable governance system, which creates the enabling environment for businesses to thrive, and we respect the sanctity of contracts. As you listen to the presentations from the various institutions and the discussions, I urge you to be mindful of Ghana’s conducive investment climate, and take advantage of this enabling environment to invest in the country. Ghana, with her open society, vibrant economy, resilient democratic institutions, and where respect for individual liberties, the rule of law and the principles of democratic accountability are ingrained into her body politic, is ready for business. As host of the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), investors are assured of the opportunity to use Ghana as a launch-pad to reach the rest of the continent, and to maximise profit from investments.
If there is any take-away from this forum, it should be a decision to invest in Ghana, a decision you will never regret. Let us come together and work for our shared benefit. Ghana is ready for business.
I thank you for your attention.