'Come and build with us' - Lands Minister urges investors to help Africa turn mineral wealth into prosperity

Ghana has challenged investors and international partners to look beyond the minerals beneath Africa’s soil and help build the industries, businesses and skilled workforce needed to secure the continent’s economic future.

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, delivered the message at the Mining in Motion Summit in Accra on Monday, October 19, calling for a new approach to mineral investment in which African countries benefit not only from extracting gold and other resources, but also from processing them, manufacturing products and creating jobs at home.

“The world needs Africa’s minerals. Africa welcomes the world’s partnership,” he said, urging investors to work with African countries on fair agreements that deliver lasting benefits to both sides.

“Come and invest. Come and build with us.”

The Minister said the real measure of success in the mining industry should be how much value countries retain from their natural resources, rather than simply the volume of minerals exported.

Strengthening local content and procurement, expanding refining capacity and improving gold traceability are among the measures being pursued to keep more value within the country.

He also pointed to opportunities in aluminium, lithium and other minerals, stressing that investment must increasingly connect extraction with processing and, where commercially viable, manufacturing.

Buah said Ghana was undertaking reforms to improve confidence in the mining sector while ensuring that communities and local businesses had a greater stake in its future. He disclosed that Cabinet had approved a revised Minerals and Mining Policy and endorsed proposed amendments to the Minerals and Mining Act for consideration by Parliament.

The proposed reforms address licensing, local participation and community development, including provisions requiring mining companies to enter into community development agreements. He maintained that responsible investment must come with benefits for people living in mining areas.

The government, he added, was also pursuing efforts to combat illegal mining, restore degraded lands and support lawful small-scale miners through initiatives such as the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development Programme (rCOMSDEP).

Representing the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, at the summit, the Omanhene of Essumeja, Odeneho Nana Okyere Kusi Ntrama, commended the growing national conversation around Ghana’s mineral future, describing the initiative as an opportunity to shape a new direction for the industry across Africa.

The Essumejahene recalled how the Mining in Motion discussions had evolved from an effort to bring traditional leadership into conversations on mining into a broader platform for examining the sector’s challenges and its future policy direction.

The Asantehene’s representative also cautioned that reforms must be pursued with transparency, efficiency and a clear understanding of the realities facing investors and workers. While Africa must negotiate stronger partnerships and retain a greater share of the value generated from its resources, he said, the industry must remain productive, create employment and uphold proper labour and safety standards.

He called for the responsible adoption of technology, the development of local expertise and open engagement with international partners, warning that uncertainty and partisan disputes could increase operational and financial risks.

As discussions at the summit turned to the future of mineral investment, the central challenge remained how to transform Africa’s resource wealth into prosperity that ordinary citizens could see and experience.

Source: Lands Ministry