MDF administrator champions women's financing

The Administrator of the Minerals Development Fund (MDF), Dr Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei, delivered a powerful and thought-provoking address at the 2026 Association of Women in Mining Africa (AWIMA) Leadership Awards and Conference held in Cape Town, South Africa, reaffirming the central role of women in Africa’s mining-led development agenda.

Speaking on the theme “Financing Women’s Participation in Mining: Government’s Instrument for Inclusive Development,” the Administrator underscored the critical responsibility of governments and public institutions in dismantling financial barriers that continue to limit women’s full participation across the mining value chain.

Addressing an audience of policymakers, industry leaders, investors, and development partners from across the continent, she emphasised that financing women is not merely a gender issue, but a national economic strategy.

“When we finance women, we do not just empower individuals; we strengthen families, stabilize communities, and secure the foundations of national development,” she stated to sustained applause.

She challenged conventional perceptions of women-focused financing, urging stakeholders to move beyond symbolic commitments. According to her, women’s access to capital, equipment, land, technology, and markets must be deliberately embedded within national mining frameworks.

“Financing women is not charity; it is nation building. It is government’s most practical instrument for inclusive development.”

The administrator further called for coordinated action across the mining ecosystem, from policy formulation to project implementation. She urged governments, regulators, financial institutions, and private sector actors to:

• Allocate resources intentionally toward women-led mining enterprises

• Design gender-responsive financing frameworks that address structural barriers

• Equip women technically through targeted skills development programs

• Strengthen access to credit and procurement opportunities

• Align policy with demographic realities to reflect women’s growing participation in the sector

She noted that women-led mining enterprises consistently demonstrate strong community reinvestment patterns, higher social accountability, and inclusive employment practices, making them vital partners in sustainable development.

Her address resonated strongly with AWIMA’s mission of advancing leadership, equity, and opportunity for women in mining across Africa.

It also reinforced MDF’s commitment to inclusive financing models, equitable mineral revenue management, and sustainable community development.

The speech emerged as a defining moment of the conference, positioning women’s participation not as an optional social objective, but as a strategic pillar for the future of Africa’s mining sector.

In framing government financing as a transformative development instrument, the MDF Administrator firmly placed women at the center of Africa’s mining future.

This vision aligns strongly with the leadership direction of John Dramani Mahama, who is finalising arrangements to officially launch the Women’s Development Bank, a bold and strategic national intervention designed to expand access to capital for female entrepreneurs across key sectors, including mining.

The bank is expected to serve as a core source of sustainable financing for women-led enterprises, unlocking new opportunities for participation, ownership, and growth within Ghana’s mineral value chain.

With this initiative, Ghana once again demonstrates that financing women is not rhetoric, it is policy, it is structure and it is national development in action.

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