The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has asserted that Ghana cannot survive without aid when it continues to give away its natural resources to foreigners at chicken change.
This follows the government’s agreement with Barari DV for the mining of Lithium signed on October 20, 2023.
The $250-million project, located in Ewoyaa, Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region, is set to commence production by 2025.
The deal includes a 10% royalty and 13% free carried interest in the state, surpassing the existing 5% and 10%, respectively, for other mining agreements.
Speaking in an interview with Bernard Avle on the Point of View (POV) on Citi TV on Monday, Dr. John Kwakye, Director of Research at IEA, said the institute firmly backed President Nana Akufo-Addo’s vision of achieving a Ghana beyond aid.
That, he stressed, was because Ghana was a rich country endowed with resources like no other country in the world for which reason the country should not let go of her resources but leverage them for maximum gains.
“We support the President’s vision that we should position Ghana beyond aid. But you cannot achieve that when you continue to give your natural resources away cheaply. We believe that Ghana is not poor. We are rich. In fact, we have compiled data and come up with a figure that is more than $10 trillion. We have gold, manganese, bauxite, diamond, uranium, lithium, copper, iron ore, gas, oil.”
“I am not sure that there is any other country in this world that God has endowed with so many natural resources. We are sitting on it and up here we say we are poor, and then we have to run to the IMF to ask for just $3 billion spread over three years, and they impose all kinds of conditions on us. You can’t do this, you can’t do that. Is that what we want?” Dr. Kwakye queried.
Meanwhile, former President John Dramani Mahama has slammed the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia-led government for abandoning the 40-year national development plan and implementing the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda, which he claims has transformed Ghana into a “beggar nation.”
Speaking at the 9th Ghana CEO Network Business Cocktail, Mahama argued that the Ghana Beyond Aid policy has been ineffective.
He stated, “Unfortunately, the present government discarded the 40-year plan and replaced it with a Ghana Beyond Aid plan that has turned Ghana into a beggar nation.”