Samuel A. Jinapor, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, is courting a collaboration between the Chinese government and its businesses and Ghana for strategic and sustainable exploitation of the country’s green resources.
Delivering a keynote address at the China-Ghana Resources Innovation Roundtable on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, the Lands Minister outlined the features of Ghana’s green mineral policy which he said make it the most viable avenue for investment for Chinese investors.
The Lands Minister expressed the government’s commitment to building an equitable atmosphere that will harness and propel the growth of Ghanaian businesses and protect foreign investments.
He emphasized the potential for a substantial increase in revenue and additional benefits for Chinese companies to extend and diversify their investments in Ghana’s budding green mineral industry.
He also appealed to Chinese companies and investors to make the strategic decision to invest in green mineral resources such as lithium, iron and industrial minerals, including salt, as its benefits and returns are most certainly guaranteed.
“Our policy is geared towards effective exploitation, value addition, environmental protection, local content and participation and effective utilization of our mineral resources for the benefit of Ghanaians and investors alike”, he noted.
“It is for this reason that we have established GIADEC, GIISDEC to promote and develop integrated iron and aluminium industries in Ghana. We have also strengthened the MIIF to manage and maximize the value of mineral income accruing to the state.”
“The government of Ghana is ready to partner with investors, particularly those from China to add value to our mineral resources with the ultimate goal of ensuring, efficient, effective and managed exploitation of our natural resources for the benefit of our people while ensuring optimal returns for the investors. As the only country to build an end-to-end lithium battery industry, the government of the People’s Republic of China and Chinese investors must be our natural partners in this endeavour.
Highlighting the significantly impressive contributions of Ghana’s mining sector to the country’s economy, the minister noted that the sector contributes 16 percent of the total revenue generated by the government of Ghana and also forms 7.9 percent of Ghana’s GDP.
On his part, the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Lu Kun, reiterated the commitment of his country to working with Ghana to exploit its resources in a sustainable and environment-friendly way.
The Chinese Ambassador lauded the progress made in Ghana’s mining sector and assured that his government will continue to facilitate an effective partnership between the two countries.
He mentioned the Bui Dam project and the Western Corridor as examples of impactful and innovative cooperation between Ghana and China.
Also, Li Yaohong, the Commercial Counselor at the Ghana Embassy disclosed that China has many world-class mining companies that have a strong interest in participating in Ghana’s mining cooperation.
“If the operations of these companies in Ghana are successful, it will undoubtedly encourage more powerful Chinese companies especially some large mining giants to make investments in Ghana’s mining industry, and the economic and trade cooperation between China and Ghana will be further improved.”
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