Sophia Akuffo questions policy on Ghana’s extractive agreements

A member of the Council of State, Sophia Akuffo, has questioned the policy guiding the extraction of Ghana’s mineral resources and how the proceeds are apportioned between the state and foreign investors.

She wondered why Ghana was still entering into contracts with extractive companies on its natural resources and ended up being “exploited”.

According to her, comparing recent agreements made by the state to other jurisdictions, Ghana was being overly exploited. She, therefore, recommended that those agreements be reconsidered.

She was speaking to the media and described the mineral concession agreements between Ghana and foreign investors as woefully unfavourable for the country.

The former Chief Justice was commenting on the critical areas the Council of State could be looking at aside from issues that would be presented to them by the President and said the Constitution needed to be reviewed to tackle agreements on Ghana’s extractive industry.

“What should be our policy on our natural resources? The things under our ground which we don’t seed or feed and which belong to us totally but when it comes to making use of it, we position ourselves to be exploited.

“I’m using that word very advisedly because when you read about systems and formulae used, some over 10 years ago, in other jurisdictions, you keep asking yourself, “Why are we still doing it like we are in the days of Governor Guggisberg?” she questioned.

She bemoaned the deplorable state of the mining communities where valuable resources were being explored without any benefit for the residents.

“You wonder and you end up with really pathetic towns where valuable mineral has been extracted for years, for decades, sometimes centuries and when you think of the amount of gold or diamond or whatever has been mined all those years and what it has done to the town, you ask yourself what went wrong somewhere, why, and that’s something that needs to be seen to,” she reemphasised.