One year on as GIISDEC's Chair; an account of a transformational stewardship

The Government of Ghana has been committed to promoting diversification and facilitating connections between the mining and manufacturing industries. This is in line with its vision for industrialisation and transformation of the Ghanaian economy, with a deliberate focus on value-addition to the country’s vast mineral wealth to significantly expand the capacity of the economy to create jobs and wealth for the citizenry.

It is for this reason that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, in his first term, established the Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation (GIISDEC) with the mandate to promote and develop an integrated iron and steel industry and its related matters in Ghana. With partnership with the private sector, partner organizations and communities, the corporation is poised to exploit the available raw materials that are necessary for the establishment of an integrated iron and steel industry (IISI) capable of producing the high grades of steel to support the country’s industrialization agenda.

Ghana has iron ore deposits of potential industrial or commercial importance which can be found at Sheini, Opon Mansi and Pudo. There are other iron mineral occurrences in several parts of the country. Among these are Adum Banso in the Western Region; Akpafu, Akokrowa, Nkwanta, and Kadjebi in the Oti Region. Ironically, in 2020 alone, Ghana’s importation bill of iron & steel and its articles stood at 2.9 billion Ghana cedis. The opportunity of fiscal relief and contribution to the nation’s GDP these deposits can bring when well exploited is enormous. This assertion is anchored on evidence of the marveling iron ore contribution to the economy of some iron ore producing countries

On the back of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s appointment of Hon.Farouk Aliu Mahama, the dynamic legislator for Yendi Constituency, as Chairman of the Governing Board of Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation (GIISDEC), the Honourable sector Minister, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor Esq. administered the oath of office for the Chairman and jointly other members of the Board on Wednesday, 1^st September, 2021. Assuming the chairmanship of the board, he came across as a leader who had a dashboard of his grand plan of action to put the coorporation on the speed rail.

‘’We will hit the ground running by embarking on Mineral Resource Estimation of Ghana’s iron ore deposit across the country. A strategic Master-Plan, Business Plan and calculated roadshows will enable us provide a platform to attract vital investments that will drive economic improvement, job creation, and sustainable value creation in the iron and steel industry for all stakeholders along the chain. Honorable Minister, all these is projected to be achieved within a year- that is by the end of 2022.’’- He pledged in his inaugural remarks. The energctic Board Chairman, from the word go, had a clear understanding of the objectives he set out to achieve in his mind’s eye.

In line with corporate governance manual for governing boards of public parastatals and the GIISDEC Act(Act 988), he had sufficient appreciation of his role to, among others, lead policy formulation and monitor management’s implementation of those policies to achieve the objectives of the corporation. For the layman, he is a captain-pilot with his co-pilots in the cockpit who takes coverall command and full responsibility for a flight. From the outset, he had an aggresive plan and demostrated that he was a man on a mission and in a hurry.

In the sector Minister’s press presentation on July 20, 2022, he outlined major milestones accomplished by the corporation which ticks all the boxes of the key performance indicators the Board Chairman enumerated to achieve in the year 2022.

• Commencement of Mineral Resource Estimation Across the Country: In keeping with his commitment, he got GIISDEC back to the drawing board and re-evaluated the strategy for its exploration, valuation and validation campaign, a prerequisite to securing good commercial terms for Ghana. In view of the required huge finanacial outlay which has arrested the progress of the corporation and considering the deficient fiscal space of government, the corporation under the leadership of Hon.Farouk Aliu Mahama is collaborating with the private sector who have the capacity, pursuant to its mandate, to conduct and complete the economic and technical viability study; coupled with a better understanding of the tonnage and grade of the iron resources.

This innovative financial engineering and private sector involvement saves Government of Ghana an estimated 200 Million dollars that would have been required by GIISDEC and GOG to conduct same exercise whilst at the same time guarding the exclusive right of the nation’s ownership of the iron deposits. This is a giant leap for the entity and it takes only a strategic and visionary leader to achieve this in the shortest time possible.

• ESTABLISHMENT OF A $1BILLION STEEL PLANT IN TEMA

GIISDEC has, through successful roadshows, secured an expression of interest to develop an iron and steel production plant from CISDI ,a Chinese state-owned Iron and Steel Plant Engineering and Contracting group. They have expressed their readiness to establish a $1-billion iron and steel industry plant in the country. The three phased project is expected to commence over the next three years and will involve both the downstream and upstream integrated iron and steel value chain.

Phase 1, is expected to start this year and be completed in the next 18 months. It is however expected to produce 800,000 tonnes of iron annually. CISDI is said to

invest an amount of $600 million at this stage. Phase 2, is also expected to produce 1.5 million tonnes within one year after commencement of operations. CISDI would channel $150 million into this phase. Phase 3, will include the mining of iron ore, which the country holds an estimated 6.4 billion tonnes in reserves. The investors are looking at finalising feasibility studies and signing the remaining agreements with the government to pave way for the cutting of the sod for work to begin this year. This is a major investment for the country and for the corporation under the chairmanship of the vibrant and youthful board chairman.

• Iron & Steel Master plan: Assuming the saddle of the board, the board chairman, in view of the lessons of the past and initial policy gaps from the exploitation of other minerals, and to ensure the resource benefit the owners of the resource, he chose to do things differently. That is, through an Iron and Steel Masterplan, that will define their focus and chart a roadmap to achieving the President’s vision of an Integrated Iron and Steel Industry. The Masterplan is at its finalisation phase having incorporated inputs of all relevat stakeholders including Minsitry of Railway, Ministry of Energy, downstream steel industry players, and others. As a thoughtful Board Chiarman, a Masteplan was neccesary for the industry in order to provide technical guidance and practical direction on every step on the way to develop the entire iron and steel value chain to boost the Ghanaian economy.

• PURCHASE OF DRILL-RIG TO SUPPORT EXPLORATION ACTIVITIES OF THE CORPORATION: Having realized the need to explore more potential fields and undertake intensive exploratory activities in order to advance the mandate of the corporation, he has led a resolution to equip the Ghana Geological Survey Authority with a drill-rig machine- the first of its kind for the GGSA. The purpose of purchasing the machine is to aid the GGSA carry out intensive mineral exploration and mining activities which will in turn help with the promotion of an integrated iron and steel industry and generate funds for the corporation.

• COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: One of his pioneering feats as Chairman of the Governing Board was to inspire the commenecement of a commununity engagemet exercise that will rope in their opinion and secure their blessings every step on the way of building iron and steel industry. In gradualism, the exercise is stretching across the country in every iron ore endowned community. This will ensure that the communities actively participate in the decision making process.

• PROSPECTS: IRON ORE MINING STARTS END OF 2023:

The era where the discovery of iron ore occurences is an abstract subject confined to the pages of geopraphy literature and geo-science studies will soon evaporate into the thin air. Today, our country has come closer, more than ever, to doing something concrete about the rich iron ore deposits in the country.

A giant step of huge investment into the resource estimation of the natural endowments has kickstarted earnestly, the first step taken towards the mining proper of iron ore in Ghana. It is for this reason that the Board Chairman has given indication that our country is set for mining iron ore by the end of 2023.

Under His Excellency President Akufo-Addo and Hon. Abu Jinapor, through a Board Board Chairman with vision, vitality and vigour, Ghana’s golden age of industrilization is nigh. The light at the end of the tunnel is so bright there is no doubt about Ghana joining the league of iron and steel producing countries sooner than later.

Hon. Farouk Aliu Mahama, together with his excellent team, is playing unparalleled role in helping to shape and place Ghana's iron and steel industry at the centre of the transformational vision and the industrialisation agenda of His Excellency the President.

He has braced up himself for all of the obvious challenging tasks and come up with policies that will develop the sector into a vibrant, modern, robust and integrated system that will serve as a catalyst for the transformation of the economy. He came prepared to serve. He came with a PLAN & BLUEPRINT to succeed. GIISDEC is on a high acceleration under a man who came well prepared for the office. He came, he saw and he is conquering in bits.

Abdallah Abdul Matin

The writer is a student of Energy Economics.