‘Mining sector can be wealth for Ghana’

The Australia High Commissioner to Ghana, Ms Joanna Adamson, said Ghana’s Mining Sector can be of economic power to the nation and wealth to the people if prudently managed.

The mining sector could be an engine for wealth, with the involvement of experts providing technical advice on managing resources. Ms Adamson made this known during an interview with the Ghana News Agency after the Commission hosted four Australian Volunteers for International Development Programme in Ghana.

The volunteers would work with their respective organizations; the United Nations University Institute of Natural Resource Management In Africa, Friend of the Nation and Africa Women International for a year.

Ms Adamson said the volunteers would share their technical expertise and contribute to improve Ghana’s development in areas of governance in the extractive sector and environmental management.

She said their expertise would also help promote sustainable livelihoods for women by offering them skills in research, monitoring and evaluation as well as public communications.

She said Australia was supporting Ghana’s efforts in the mining and agriculture sectors with the provision of expertise taking into account the African Unions Mining Vision into practice.

The Australia was also assisting Ghana in the management of maritime security. Ms Adamson said, as part of the Australia governments cooperation with Ghana, the Commission was providing scholarship dubbed Australia Awards to graduates from Ghana, to pursue programmes on mining, agriculture, public sector administration, health and education.

The High Commissioner explained that the Australian volunteers helped to strengthen Australia’s partnership with Ghana, pointing out that at present 23 Australian volunteers were located in six regions of Ghana providing services.

Investment in volunteers has been a part of Australia’s larger strategy to support agricultural productivity, effective governance of mineral resources, and to promote shared long term prosperity in Ghana, Ms Adamson said.

Since 2010, the Australian government had funded more than 75 professional volunteers, and supporting about 20 volunteers in a year under its Volunteers for International Development Programme through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.