1. The Ecowas Bank for Investment & Development (EBID) claims to have signed an agreement to finance the Black Volta Gold Mine.
2. Black Volta Gold Mine is owned by Azumah Resources.
3. Azumah Resources is owned by Ibaera Capital.
4. Ibaera Capital insists that it is not involved in any such deal.
5. EBID is a regional multilateral development bank expected to abide by the highest transparency and governance standards.
6. It is incumbent on EBID to clarify this strange and bizarre confusion.
While we are on the subject, word has gone out that the President of Ghana is seeking to “intervene.”
7. That intervention is much warranted as this situation definitely has political undertones. There are two Directors of Azumah Resources that were nominated by Engineers & Planners (E&P) on the back of an agreement with Ibaera that the latter has terminated and which is now the subject of arbitration in London.
8. Those two directors are all appointees of the President of Ghana manning key institutions, namely SSNIT and the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund. E&P’s own admission of regulatory influence compounds this perception. The Chair of Governors of Ecowas Bank is another appointee of the President, his serving Finance Minister.
9. Hopefully, wise counsel will prevail, and an amicable solution shall be found that benefits the people of the Upper West and strengthens Ghana’s reputation as a mining jurisdiction for both local and international investors.
10. Creating national champions in any sector, including mining and oil & gas, requires sophisticated strategies, not buga buga.
Read the full article here: ECOWAS Bank jumps into Big Gold Mine Fight in Ghana – THE SCARAB
