A Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources in charge of mining, George Mireku Duker has called for Africans to be actively involved in the trading of the natural resources exploited from the continent.
He called on African governments to help build the capacity of their citizens to take advantage of the resources bequeathed to them to help in the development of their respective countries.
“Governments must help build the capacities of citizens to take advantage of Local Content policies in the sector,” he said.
The Minister advised during a panel discussion on the topic “Balancing Resources & Responsibility: Collaborative Strategies for Sustainable and Responsible Mining,” at the maiden Egypt Mining Forum hosted by the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum & Mineral Resources in Cairo.
He explained that various legal and regulatory frameworks “need to be stable over a reasonable period in order not to deter investors”.
He charged resource-rich African countries to consider adding value to the resources they mine and not always focusing on the export of the raw minerals as currently happens.
“There is the need for African mineral resources producing countries to be conscious of value addition and take advantage of continental frameworks such as AfCFTA to trade amongst themselves and have a common voice and say in pricing and trading of the world’s Minerals,” he explained.
He told investors at the conference that “Ghana is a bastion of democracy and a preferable destination for mining investment on the continent.”
George Mireku Duker, who is also MP for Tarkwa-Nsuaem, led a Ghanaian delegation to the conference.
The forum seeks to consolidate Egypt’s mineral resources discoveries over a century and bring together African countries and mining companies towards a sustainable future with shared values to the citizenry.