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Akufo-Addo promises alternative sources of livelihood for sacked illegal miners

By MyJoyOnline
Politics Akufo-Addo promises alternative sources of livelihood for sacked illegal miners
MAY 22, 2017 LISTEN

President Nana Akufo-Addo has revealed that his government is in the process of identifying alternative sources of livelihood for persons affected by the clampdown on illegal mining activities across the country.

According to President Akufo-Addo, a cabinet committee has been established and headed by the Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Prof. Kwabena Frimping Boateng, to this effect.

The committee, he added, will also implement government’s strategy on combating the illegal mining menace.

Addressing the Ghanaian community resident in Conakry, on Thursday, May 18, 2017, the 2nd day of his 3-day visit to that country, President stated that “one of the advantages of campaigning is that you get to see Ghana. It is the exposure I had in this last campaign of what was actually going on in the field that hardened my decision, God-willing if I was to win the election, to make the fight against ‘galamsey’ one of my priorities.”

With the christening of Ghana’s first modern city as Elmina, to wit ‘The Mine’ by the Portuguese, President Akufo-Addo stated that as far back as the 15th century, there was the recognition that mining was important for the country’s economy.

“But what we cannot have happen is for mining to compromise our future environment. 60%, we are told, of the water bodies in Ghana have been affected by illegal mining activities. That is unacceptable. We are not out to attack Chinese or Canadians or whoever. We are saying that we want people to respect the laws of our country and make sure that our environment does not suffer from mining, and that is what we are going to do,” he added.

Describing aluminum as “the metal of the future”, President noted that Ghana’s experience with the Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), which saw Kaiser, operators of the smelter, import bauxite from Jamaica, means that “we need an integrated aluminium industry in Ghana – right from the mining of the bauxite to alumina, and the refining of alumina into aluminum.”

It was his hope that by the end of this next sitting of Parliament, a bill establishing an Aluminum Development Authority – the vehicle principally responsible for putting together the whole of the infrastructure that is required for the exploitation of the country’s bauxite resources at Nyinahin and Kyebi – will be passed.

“Aluminum is the metal of the future, and we have substantial quantities of the raw material in our country. We need a strategy that will ensure value-addition, and not just exporting it in its raw form. There is no future in the export of our raw materials. But, that, we must add value inside our country, create jobs, and at the end of the process we will have aluminum,” he added.

It is for this reason, President Akufo-Addo stated, that former President Kufuor bought VALCO, “so that it will be part of this process for an integrated aluminum industry in Ghana. Very soon the plans will be out.”

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Additional files from Graphic online

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