The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has hailed the policies of President Akufo-Addo as the core reason Ghana regained its position as Africa’s number-one Gold producing country.
Ghana recorded a 32% increase in gold production last year, enabling it to win back the top spot from South Africa as the largest gold producer on the continent.
Ghana lost its position to South Africa in 2021 after a drastic fall in output. However, with a renewed focus on the mining sector, the country has made a remarkable comeback.
Gold production surged from 2.8 million ounces in the previous year to an impressive 3.7 million ounces in 2022, driven by growth in both the large-scale and small-scale mining sectors.
The Ministry of Lands and Resources attributes this resurgence to the revival of the AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine in 2019 and the Bibiani Mine in 2022. The reopening of these two major mines played a significant role in boosting gold production.
“Gold production by large-scale mining companies increased from 2.72 million ounces in 2021 to 3.08 million ounces in 2022, whilst gold exports from the small-scale sector rose from 98,001 ounces to 655,656 ounces over the same period. Overall, the country’s gold output increased from 2.82 million ounces in 2021 to 3.74 million ounces in 2022.
“It would be recalled that following the active intervention of the President of the Republic, H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine, which was put under care and maintenance in 2016, was revived in 2019.
“The Bibiani Mine, which had been dormant for seven (7) years, was also revived in October 2022. The revival of these two mines, the expansion of output by some existing mines, and the reduction of the withholding tax rate on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners, which was introduced in 2015, from three percent (3%) to one and a half percent (1.5%), have contributed significantly to Ghana’s new position on the continent.”
The statement signed by sector Minister Samuel Abu Jinapor added that “in 2022, the AngloGold Obuasi Mine increased its gold production by one hundred and thirty-two percent (132%) from the previous year, whilst the Bibiani Mine, which had not produced gold in the last seven (7) years, contributed over fifty-two thousand ounces (52,000oz) to our gold output.”
