Mining Expert and Former Chief Executive of AngloGold Ashanti, Sir Sam Jonah, is pressing the government on the need to improve local content participation in the mining sector.
He bemoans how indigenes in the sector cannot boast of at least 10 per cent of the ownership of operations.
He said, “If you take all the mining companies producing gold, Ghanaian ownership, apart from the Ghana government’s 10 per cent which we as Minerals Commission insisted on, no Ghanaian has more than one per cent or has even half per cent and that has to be corrected otherwise there’s no ownership in the natural resource; it’s all owned by foreigners.”
Sir Jonah spoke to JoyBusiness at the 2nd awards ceremony of the Ghana Mineworkers’ Union where he was one of four personalities honoured for their contribution to the sector.
In his address, Chief Director at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Professor Patrick Agbesinyale, indicated the Ministry will engage the Labour Commission to address concerns of employee-employer relationships expressed by the Mineworkers’ Union.
He said, “We believe the government’s desire to maximize the level of and benefits derived by local human, as well as other resources as much as possible, in the industry, coincides with the interest of the union and we would, therefore, undertake constructive engagement with labour to ensure that we achieve this mutual beneficial objective of ours.”
Other award winners to mark the union’s 75th-anniversary celebrations were the First Chairman of the Minerals Commission, Professor Akilagpa Sawyerr, Founding CEO of the Minerals Commission, Kofi Ansah and Former CEO of Ghana Chamber of Mines, Sam Poku.
Prof. Akilagpa Sawyerr, in accepting the honour, tasked the unionized mine workers to fight for the national wellbeing of the country.
“I give back to you the task which was observed historically; the task of looking beyond your contracts and your rights; your task of fighting for the national wellbeing,” he said.