Former Speaker urges government not to renew Gold Fields Tarkwa mining lease
Former Speaker of Parliament, Aaron Mike Oquaye, has called on Ghana to take full control of its natural resources, insisting that mining leases which do not prioritise national ownership and economic benefit should not be renewed.
Speaking during an Institute of Economic Affairs press conference in Accra on Wednesday, May 13, Prof. Oquaye argued that Ghana is well-positioned to reclaim control of key national assets once existing mining agreements expire.
He noted that several countries across the world have successfully renegotiated resource contracts in favour of national interests, even while those agreements remained valid.
“In many countries in the world, governments are renegotiating contracts that are still valid. Even there, people succeed in doing so,” he said.
Prof. Oquaye cited Libya as an example of a country that renegotiated resource agreements to favour local interests, stressing that Ghana’s position is even stronger because the current lease is nearing expiration.
“In our case, we are even in a better position. There will be no renegotiation. The lease, the contract, will expire in April of next year, just a few months to go,” he stated.
According to him, Ghana should reject any automatic renewal of such agreements and instead focus on increasing local participation in the management of the country’s mineral resources.
“The question is should we bring them back to operate that which we know is our lifeblood? The answer is no, and it must be clearly no, because now we are in the era of nations owning their property,” he stressed.
Prof. Oquaye linked Ghana’s recurring economic challenges to what he described as decades of poor management of the country’s natural resources.
“We know the state of our economy. Every regime in Ghana since the NLC which took power in 1966 has gone to the IMF,” he said.
He argued that Ghana has not fully benefited from its vast mineral and natural resources, including gold, bauxite, manganese, diamond, lithium and oil.
“What we have is our gold, diamond, bauxite, manganese, lithium and so on and oil. The way we have dealt with these natural resources determined the situation we are in today. Should we continue?” he questioned.
Prof. Oquaye also linked the debate to the treatment of Ghanaians abroad, particularly in South Africa, stressing the need for Ghana to become more economically self-reliant.
“Today we must all be very sad about how Ghanaians are treated in South Africa,” he added.
His comments come amid growing debate over the future of the Tarkwa mines lease currently held by Gold Fields, which is expected to expire in 2027.
The IEA has intensified calls for greater Ghanaian ownership in the mining sector and is urging government to prioritise local participation and national interest in deciding the future management of the mine.
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