Government has assured participants of the National Mining Dialogue 2026 that it will consider and act on policy proposals emerging from the event, with Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Yusif Sulemana, describing the platform as one the government takes very seriously.
Speaking on behalf of the Sector Minister at the dialogue, organized by Semmis DS Group Limited in collaboration with Ekosisen of Asempa FM on Tuesday August 18, 2026, Hon. Sulemana said the Ministry was ready to receive and act on recommendations from stakeholders.
According to him, government was committed to listening to diverse views and ensuring that proposals emerging from the dialogue translated into meaningful policy action.
“We and the Ministry are ready for your suggestions and your inputs. This government is a listening government, and the President is a listening President. My Minister, the hardworking Minister, will always sit here. We take this platform very, very seriously,” he stated.
The Deputy Minister added that the development of the mining sector required the collective efforts of government, industry, communities and other stakeholders.
“Government is not about a few people. It’s about all of us working together. And we think that once we are here today, at the end of the day, whatever policies you come out with, we will absorb them and the Minister will run with them,” he said.
Commends Organizers for Inclusive Participation
Hon. Sulemana commended the organizers for bringing together key stakeholders from across the mining sector, describing the broad participation as essential to reaching decisions that stakeholders would collectively own and implement.
He said the presence of representatives from government, traditional authorities, mining companies, small-scale miners and other interest groups created an opportunity for meaningful engagement.
“When we all come together and take a decision, we all get ready to implement it,” he said.
The dialogue brought together the Ga Mantse, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, as Chairperson; Adjoa Obuobia Darko of the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, Sammy Gyamfi, leadership of the Minerals Commission, Minerals Income Investment Fund, small-scale miners; gold buyers; traditional authorities; and other stakeholders in the mining sector.
The Deputy Minister used the platform to outline government’s position on three key areas: local content and skills development, the proposed Catchment Compact, and environmental protection and social licence.
1. Local Content and Skills Development
Hon. Sulemana announced his personal plan to establish an educational trust fund in his constituency to support the training of local people in mining-related skills.
He said the initiative is intended to equip Ghanaians with the technical expertise required to take advantage of employment opportunities created by mining companies.
“When these companies come, they’re able to absorb them. When we do that, then the local content that we talk about will become more meaningful,” he said.
He also disclosed that policy and legislative reforms relating to improvement in local content had already been laid before Parliament.
2. Catchment Compact and Community Benefits
Hon. Sulemana expressed support for the proposed Catchment Compact proposed by the organisers, emphasising the need for mining communities to have a greater say in projects undertaken in their areas.
He criticised the practice of companies independently selecting corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects without adequately consulting affected communities.
“We should not sit down and allow companies to decide what they do in the form of CSR. We need to involve the people when we are identifying these projects that we want to do for them,” he said.
He cited the construction of a tennis court as an example of a project that could fail to address the priorities of a community if it was undertaken without adequate consultation.
According to him, meaningful community participation would ensure that investments made by mining companies respond to the actual needs of host communities.
3. Environment and Social Licence
The Deputy Minister also urged the need for government and mining companies to strike a balance between mineral extraction and environmental protection.
“We shouldn’t focus on only the resources, we do not want to extract at the expense of the environment that we have,” he cautioned.
He further underscored the importance of securing the support of host communities, saying government-issued mining permits alone could not guarantee the success of mining operations.
“Government can issue the certificate to go and mine, but if you don’t have the social contract, forget it. You go and then resistance alone, you can’t match it,” he said.
Call for Action, Not Just Talk
Hon. Sulemana urged participants to ensure that the outcome of the dialogue did not remain at the level of discussions and recommendations.
He warned that previous conferences and programmes had often produced laudable ideas that were not adequately followed through after participants returned to their respective institutions.
“We come for conferences, we come for programmes like this. Very laudable ideas, very good suggestions. But when we leave here, then we go back to the very things that we’re doing,” he said.
He therefore called on organisers to formally submit the decisions and recommendations from the dialogue to the Ministry for consideration and implementation.
“It is our expectation that whatever decisions you take here, you will transcribe these decisions to the Ministry. And the Ministry can run with it. If we don’t do that, then this whole platform will not give us the maximum benefit that we want,” he said.
The deputy minister who is also Member of Parliament for Bole Bamboi said greater commitment to local content, the Catchment Compact, accountability and collaboration could help create a mining industry that benefits communities while maintaining public confidence.
“If we approach local content and Catchment Compact with sincerity, with accountability and with the willingness to collaborate, we can build a mining sector that is not only productive but trusted,” he concluded.
The National Mining Dialogue 2026 was themed “Mining, Local Content and the Catchment Compact: Retaking the Social License.”
By: Christian Kpesese/NR NEWS
