Ghana plans to invest $1.5 billion in developing a domestic mineral-processing industry and prohibit raw manganese and bauxite exports by 2030, as the government seeks to retain more value from its natural resources and expand manufacturing.
Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson announced the plan during his budget presentation, setting a target for at least 50% of the country’s manganese and bauxite to be processed locally by the end of 2028, before rising to full domestic processing by the end of 2030.
The government also intends to have at least 70% of artisanal gold refined locally by the end of 2027, with the share reaching 100% by December 2028, Forson said.
The plan marks an effort to move Ghana beyond exporting raw minerals towards developing domestic refining, metallurgy and manufacturing industries around manganese, bauxite, lithium and gold. The government said success would be measured by higher export earnings per tonne, skilled employment, local supplier participation, technology transfer and environmental performance.
“The country that grows the bean must retain a far greater share of the industry built around it,” Forson said, outlining the government’s broader push to expand domestic value addition.
As part of the minerals programme, the government plans to establish a 24-hour critical-minerals processing enclave in the Western Region. A new railway line, to be financed with domestic resources from 2027, is expected to connect mineral-producing areas including Nsuta, Awaso and other towns to the proposed processing hub.
The railway would transport manganese and bauxite for local processing, while the government plans to extend the line northwards to Hamile by 2030. The town is expected to serve as an inland trade gateway to Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and other Sahel markets.
The industrialisation programme is also tied to a wider expansion of electricity generation and transmission capacity. The government plans to begin construction of a 1,450-megawatt state-owned thermal power plant in December 2026, with the first 600 megawatts expected by December 2028 and the remaining capacity by 2030.
It also intends to build a 600-megawatt state-owned solar power plant and allocate $500 million between 2027 and 2030 to modernise the electricity transmission network. The investments are intended to reduce power costs and provide reliable electricity to mineral-processing, steel, cement and other industrial operations.
Forson said the government aims to reduce the cost of power generation from about 16 cents per kilowatt-hour to 8 cents or less, while phasing out emergency power plants by December 2030.
Ghana’s mineral-processing ambitions extend to lithium, where the government intends to begin with local refining before gradually developing capacity to produce battery-grade chemicals, components and cells.
The government also plans to invest $200 million in a 24-month nuclear-readiness programme beginning in January 2027. It aims to complete the preparatory work and sign engineering, procurement, construction and financing contracts by December 2028. The minister said that milestone would not mean nuclear power generation would begin in 2028.
The budget also outlines a broader push to expand agricultural processing and reduce dependence on imported food. Ghana aims to process at least 50% of its cocoa locally by the end of 2028 and all of its cocoa by 2030, moving towards a prohibition on raw cocoa exports.
The government, according to the minister, is targeting domestic production of cocoa liquor, butter, cake, powder, chocolate and other finished products, including cosmetics, as it seeks to increase the share of export value retained by Ghanaian businesses. The announcements set out an ambitious timetable for expanding domestic industrial capacity.
