Former Energy Minister and former Chairman of the Energy and Mines of Commitee of Parliament, Dr. Kwabena Donkor, says Ghana has reached a stage in its mining development where it possesses the expertise, managerial capacity, and indigenous business ecosystem needed to retain a larger share of the benefits from its vast mineral wealth.
Dr. Donkor believes that the debate over the future of the Tarkwa Mine lease should not be viewed through the narrow lens of nationalism, but rather through the country’s evolving state of development and its growing capacity to manage its mineral resources.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with The High Street Journal, the mining consultant strongly argued that the state and the local companies have the capacity to effectively run the country’s mines to retain significant benefits locally.
Resource Nationalism Must Reflect a Country’s Level of Development
According to Dr. Donkor, there is no universal answer to who should benefit most from a country’s natural resources.
He explained that decisions regarding ownership and participation in the extractive sector must be guided by a country’s level of economic development, strategic objectives and human capital capacity.
“In the extractive industry of the 21st century, there is an increasing phenomenon of resource nationalism,” he noted, adding that Ghana’s current capabilities warrant a reassessment of how much value the country retains from its mining industry.
Ghana No Longer Lacks Mining Expertise
Central to Dr. Donkor’s argument is that Ghana has successfully developed a highly skilled mining workforce over decades of mining operations. He pointed out that expatriate participation in the country’s large-scale mining operations has become minimal despite most mines being foreign-owned.
The overwhelming majority of engineers, chemists, metallurgists, geologists and managers operating the large-scale mines in the country are Ghanaians. He adds that Ghana’s mining expertise has become so advanced that the country now exports mining professionals to some of the world’s biggest mining jurisdictions, including Australia and Canada.
“Ghana does not lack human capital. Indeed, we are a net exporter of highly skilled human capital in the mining space. And so companies, mines in Australia, Canada, etc., recruit Ghanaian top mining engineers, mining managers, mining specialists,” he remarked.
Ghanaian Companies Already Perform the Mining
Dr. Donkor further argued that local participation has expanded beyond labour to operational execution.
He revealed that much of the actual mining activity at major mines such as Tarkwa is already being carried out by Ghanaian subcontractors who own and operate sophisticated mining equipment.
According to him, foreign mining companies largely serve as asset owners and administrators while local contractors undertake the extraction activities.
“The actual mining is being carried out by Ghanaian subcontractors,” he stated. This, he believes, demonstrates that Ghanaian firms have acquired the technical and operational capabilities required to participate more meaningfully in the sector.
The development in the sector, he believes, should inform the country’s natural resource governance and management.
The Damang Mine Example
Dr. Donkor cited the recent experience at Damang Mine as evidence that Ghanaian institutions can successfully oversee mining operations without disrupting production. He noted that following changes in ownership arrangements, production levels have increased while jobs have been maintained.
According to him, the Damang experience demonstrates that local participation does not necessarily lead to operational decline.
“No one has lost their job. Production has even gone up,” he observed.
A Call for Greater Value Retention
Ultimately, Dr. Donkor believes Ghana’s mining sector has matured sufficiently to justify a new development model that allows the country to retain a greater share of the wealth generated from its mineral resources.
With local engineers running the mines, local contractors undertaking operations and Ghanaian professionals exporting expertise globally, he argues that Ghana has reached a stage where it can confidently pursue arrangements that deliver greater economic benefits to its citizens.
“We have come of age as a country that exports high-quality mining labour,” he said, adding that the next logical step is ensuring that a larger share of mining wealth remains within the Ghanaian economy.
