The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Honorable Samuel Abu Jinapor has expressed the government’s plans to partner Chinese government and businesses to undertake strategic and sustainable exploitation of the country’s green mineral resources.
The Member of Parliament for Damango Constituency in the Savannah Region while delivering the keynote address at the China-Ghana Resources Innovation Roundtable on Tuesday, April 30, 2024 outlined the features of Ghana’s green mineral policy that makes it the most viable avenue for investment by Chinese investors.
According to him, the ultimate aim of government is to ensure that both the Ghanaian public and businesses benefit equitably from the country’s rich resources and that a robust and supportive climate has been created by the government for investment and businesses to thrive.
The Lands and Natural Resources Minister further emphasized the potential for a substantial increase in revenue and additional benefits for Chinese companies to extend and diversify their investments in Ghana’s budding green mineral industry.
He also appealed to Chinese companies and investors to make the strategic decision to invest in green mineral resources such as lithium, iron and industrial minerals including salt as its benefits and returns are most certainly guaranteed.
“Our policy is geared towards effective exploitation, value addition, environmental protection, local content and participation and effective utilization of our mineral resources for the benefit of Ghanaians and investors alike.
“It is for this reason why we’ve established GIADEC, GIISDEC to promote and develop integrated iron and aluminum industries in Ghana. We have also strengthened the MIIF to manage and maximize the value of mineral income accruing to the state”.
Honorable Samuel Abu Jinapor
Furthermore, Honorable Samuel Abu Jinapor recounted the government of Ghana’s commitment to partner with investors, particularly those from China to add value to Ghana’s mineral resources.
He noted that the ultimate goal of the government is to ensure efficient and effective exploitation of the country’s natural resources for the benefit of all Ghanaians while ensuring optimal returns for the investors.
The Importance of Ghana-China Partnership
He stressed the importance of the government of the People’s Republic of China and Chinese investors to become Ghana’s natural resources partners as the country seek to build an end-to-end lithium-to-battery industry.
Highlighting the significant and impressive contributions of Ghana’s mining sector to the country’s economy, the Land and Natural Resources Minister stated that the sector contributes 16% of the total revenue generated by the government of Ghana and also forms 7.9% of the Gross Domestic Products.
He therefore posited that these impressive numbers have the potential to rise astronomically through an effective Ghana-China collaboration, emphasizing the historically rich bilateral relations between Ghana and China as well as the success stories of Chinese companies in Ghana, particularly the mining sector.
Honorable Jinapor further asserted that the aforementioned reasons should stimulate the interest of the Chinese government and businesses in joining forces with Ghana which is Africa’s leading producer of gold to become the powerhouse of mining in the world.
On the other hand, the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, His Excellency Lu Kun reiterated the commitment of the Chinese government to work with Ghana to exploit its resources in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way.
H.E Lu Kun also underscored Ghana’s progress made in the mining sector and further expressed the Chinese government’s commitment to facilitate an effective partnership with Ghana to improve the country’s green mineral exploitation.
He mentioned the Bui Dam project and Western Corridor as examples of impactful and innovative cooperation between Ghana and China.
Mr. Li Yaohong, the Commercial Counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Ghana also disclosed that China has many world-class mining companies that have a strong interest in participating in Ghana’s mining cooperation.
He stated that if the operations of these companies in Ghana is successful, it will undoubtedly encourage more powerful Chinese companies especially some large mining giants to make investment in Ghana’s mining industry, to further improve the economic and trade cooperation between China and Ghana.
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