Ghana’s ongoing gold boom may be providing a significant boost to the economy, but the country risks missing a much bigger industrial opportunity if it continues to depend heavily on gold while leaving other valuable mineral resources largely untapped.
Former Minister for Power, former Member of Parliament and former Chairman of Parliament’s Energy and Mines Committee, Dr. Kwabena Donkor, believes Ghana must look beyond its gold success and deliberately develop its iron ore and other mineral resources to create a stronger industrial base, generate sustainable employment and expand the economy.
In an exclusive interview with The High Street Journal, Dr. Donkor argued that although gold has made a tremendous contribution to the economy over the past 18 months, the country cannot afford to build its economic future around a single mineral when it possesses several other commercially valuable resources.
“We cannot afford to be dependent on just one mineral when we are so well endowed by nature,” he stressed.
His argument is that Ghana’s mineral wealth should not simply be measured by how much ore it extracts and exports, but by how much economic value it can create from processing those resources into finished and intermediate industrial products.
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Move Beyond Extraction to Mineral Processing and Industrialisation
Dr. Donkor argues that Ghana’s biggest opportunity lies in moving beyond the traditional practice of extracting minerals and exporting them in relatively unprocessed forms.
He believes the country must prioritise developing its iron ore deposits, establishing the necessary smelting facilities and creating an industrial ecosystem capable of converting raw materials into products that can support manufacturing and other economic activities.
“I expect a concerted attempt to not just mine our iron ore deposits, but to process them, build the appropriate smelters, turn the mineral into industrial goods,” he said.
He identified Opon Mansi, Oti and other locations as areas with iron ore deposits that could support this industrial ambition. However, he cautioned that such transformation would not happen automatically. It would require deliberate government intervention to create the right investment conditions and attract capital into the iron and steel industry.
“It will not happen accidentally, it has to be deliberate,” he emphasised.
According to him, developing the sector would provide opportunities for industrial expansion, sustainable employment and a broader economic base. He warned that leaving these resources underground means Ghana is not benefiting from their potential economic contribution.
“As long as the resources are still locked up in the ground, they remain non-impactful,” he noted.
Make Affordable Electricity Central to Industrial Development
While investment and infrastructure are essential, Dr. Donkor believes the availability of affordable electricity will ultimately determine whether Ghana can successfully develop its mineral processing and heavy industrial sectors.
Iron and steel production, aluminium smelting and other mineral conversion activities require substantial and reliable electricity supplies. Consequently, high power costs could make locally manufactured products uncompetitive and discourage investors.
He therefore called on the government to prioritise affordable electricity for industrial users, arguing that industrial competitiveness must become a central consideration in the country’s energy policy.
“Industry has to be competitive. And in a number of these mineral conversion industries, the cost of power is key,” he explained.
He cited the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) as an example of how electricity costs have constrained Ghana’s industrial ambitions. According to him, VALCO is currently operating at best, at one and a half potlines, largely because of the cost of power.
He also raised concerns about Ghana’s longstanding ambition to develop an integrated bauxite and aluminium industry, including refining bauxite and expanding aluminium smelting capacity. For him, the country cannot realistically pursue that ambition without securing affordable baseload electricity to support continuous industrial operations.
Use the Current Economic Recovery to Attract Strategic Investment
Beyond mineral processing and affordable electricity, Dr. Donkor believes Ghana must take advantage of its improving economic conditions to attract deliberate investment into its iron and steel industry.
He argues that the state has an important responsibility to establish the necessary conditions for investors to commit capital to large-scale mineral processing projects. This includes addressing infrastructure and energy constraints while providing an environment in which industrial investments can operate competitively and sustainably.
He believes the current economic recovery presents an opportunity for government to pursue this industrial transformation rather than allow the gold boom to overshadow other opportunities within the extractive sector.
Ultimately, Dr. Donkor’s argument goes beyond extracting more minerals. It is about ensuring that Ghana captures a greater share of the economic value generated from its natural resources.
