The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has described as “a remarkable feat” Ghana’s return to the top as Africa’s Number 1 gold-producing country.
“This remarkable feat is attributable to the policies and programmes being implemented by the Akufo-Addo government in close collaboration with the Ghana Chamber of Mines,” the Lands and Natural Resources Minister said in a press release on Monday, June 12.
It is estimated that gold-production by large-scale mining companies operating in the country increased from 2.72 million ounces in 2021 to 3.08 million ounces in 2022 while exports from the small-scale sector rose from 98,001 ounces in 2021 to 655,656 ounces in 2022.
According to the Minister, this was due to the “active” intervention of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in, for instance, reviving AngloGold Ashanti’s Obuasi Mine in 2019 and the Bibiani Mine in 2022.
“The revival of these two mines, the expansion of output by some existing mines, and the reduction of the withholding tax rate on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners, which was introduced in 2015, from three percent to one and a half percent, have contributed significantly to Ghana’s new position on the continent,” Mr Jinapor, who is also the Member of Parliament for Damongo, said.
He further expressed hope that gold production in Ghana will increase in the next two years as a result of the coming on-stream of three new large-scale mining operations in the Upper East, Upper West and Ahafo regions.
“Government remains committed to increasing the contribution of the mining industry to the local economy through local content and local participation, as well as value addition to minerals mined.”
He said the gold resources will be leveraged for innovative programmes such as Gold 4 Oil and help stabilise the local currency.