As debate intensifies over the future ownership of the country’s strategic mineral assets, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) has assured investors that Ghana remains firmly open to foreign investment in the mining sector.
The Centre says efforts to increase Ghanaian participation in large-scale mining are not a signal of hostility toward foreign investors, but rather the next phase in the evolution of the country’s mining industry.
The clarification comes amid discussions over the renewal of Gold Fields’ mining lease for the Tarkwa Mine, one of Ghana’s largest gold-producing assets, which expires in 2027. The issue has divided opinion, with some policy groups pushing for greater Ghanaian ownership of the mine when the lease expires, while industry players warn that uncertainty surrounding the renewal process could rattle investor confidence.
Speaking at a recent media engagement, GIPC Chief Executive Simon Madjie argued that Ghana’s long mining history has produced a strong base of local companies ready to play a bigger role in the sector — not just as service providers and contractors, but as mining operators in their own right.
“Ghana has been mining gold for a very long time, maybe 120 to 130 years. Throughout this period, we have seen the natural growth of Ghanaian businesses that have done well in the mining services sector. So it is only a matter of time that at some point, those that have the ability to do this mining will step up,” he said.
Madjie was quick to dismiss suggestions that the push for local ownership signals a retreat from foreign direct investment.
“It doesn’t mean that the country is anti-foreign direct investment. We are pretty much pro-foreign direct investment into the mining sector,” he said, adding that the government simply wants to test whether Ghana’s private sector can take on a greater role in mineral extraction alongside — not instead of — foreign investors.
“We’ve only gotten to a point where we want to see if Ghana’s private sector can really also take up the mandate of mining to see what the prospects will be for us,” he said.
He described the moment as a turning point, saying Ghana was entering “that defining moment in history where we want to see Ghana’s private participation in the mining sector.”
