Stakeholders in the mining sector within the sub-region are putting in place a harmonized mining code that will ensure that respective countries maximize the full benefit of their natural resources.
Africa has significant mineral resources accounting for 30% of the world’s proven reserves, with the continent having 89% reserves of platinum, 89 % of Chromium, 61% Manganese, 25% bauxite and 40% gold.
Currently the continent produces 50 % of the world’s diamond, 15% of bauxite, 25 % of gold and 25% uranium. Ghana is the 10th gold producer in the world and second in Africa.
With all these natural resources, African countries have not really benefited from the resources due to many reasons including different mining codes that aim at attracting investors at the peril of the citizenry.
African countries in their quest to attract multi-national mining companies compete among themselves by lowering standards in the areas of taxes and environment whereas the multi-national mining companies ensure that they have the same or similar standards for all countries.
At a three-day workshop in Accra organized by WACAM and OXFAM America, which was aimed at seeking civil society input into the drafting of the ECOWAS Mining Code, the Director of Training and Research for WACAM, Mrs. Hannah Owusu-Koranteng, revealed that the weak environmental standards across the continent has helped mining companies to maximize huge profits.
She indicated that currently in Ghana there are no regulations to deal with cyanide spillages, there are weak laws with regard to reclamation and government is on the verge of allowing mining in forest reserves.
Mrs. Owusu-Koranteng further said that other issues that have made mining not beneficial to the country include stability agreements which allow and protect companies for 15 years to reap huge profits and even in the event that governments amend the laws to reap more benefits, they are considered to have breached contracts and accordingly made to pay huge fines.
In addition, low royalty payments – even with gold price hovering around $1,000-all mining companies are paying 3% though the law says companies should pay between 3% - 6%, and when companies fail to pay royalties, they are treated as debts owed to the State which is recovered in court.
Mrs. Owusu-Koranteng further said that poor compensation payment regimes and relatively lower remunerations for employees, exemption from payment of customs, import duty and VAT in respect of plant , machinery, equipment, and accessories imported for mining are other problems the nation has had to battle with over the years.
She said that the Minerals and Mining Act (Act 703) permits foreign mining companies to retain not less than 25% of its foreign exchange earnings in offshore accounts. Companies could negotiate a retention of about 80-90% of earnings from foreign exchange in offshore accounts.
In her view there is an inadequate protection of community rights in the mining law whilst the 1992 Constitution of Ghana makes provision for citizens to go to High Court on original Jurisdiction on Compensation issues, in the case of mining, compensation grievances are supposed to be made to the Minister responsible for mines first without direct recourse to the High Court.
She said some of the challenges in mining advocacy include the capacity gap between mining communities and multinational mining companies, the tendency of government agencies to protect corporate interest as against the sovereign rights of citizens and mining communities. Others are weak legal framework for mining; weak environmental standards, weak regulatory institutions, attraction of mining investment to Africa-the “Race to the bottom”- and intimidation of communities.
The Executive Director of WACAM, Mr. Daniel Owusu Koranteng, said that the introduction of a common code would help raise the standards of mining across the sub-region.
He indicated that with such a code no country in the sub-region would be compelled to lower its standards to attract investors.
Mr. Owusu Koranteng was optimistic that the Ghana government would lead the crusade to ensure that the code is ratified within the shortest reasonable period in order that the country will maximize its full benefit from the mining industry.
Ms. Valerie Gnide Traore, an International Campaign Strategist, facilitated the workshop and indicated that compensations given to Mining Communities across the sub-region were minimal and apart from mining destroying the arable lands of community members in most cases there are reported cases of human rights abuses in most mining communities.
She said factors such as lack of control of resources, lack of information and right for communities to decide what they want and how they want to live, were among other factors affecting the human rights of the mining communities.
Author: By Selorm Amevor
