Partner Ghana to develop her Bauxite – Bawumia to US

Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia has requested of the United States government through the Secretary for Commerce, Wilbur Ross, to consider partnering with Ghana in her quest to develop a strong bauxite industry in the country.

Delivering the Special Guest of Honour’s address at the plenary session of the maiden U.S-Ghana Business Forum at the Accra Marriott Hotel under the theme; ‘Strengthening U.S. – Ghana Commercial Partnership Towards a Ghana Beyond Aid’, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia said Ghana has rich bauxite deposits that can be exploited for well over fifty years.

With the success story of the United States in the aluminum and bauxite sectors, a partnership with the most powerful country in the world would yield mutually beneficial gains to both Countries, the Vice President observed.

Vice President Bawumia, added that, as government begins the process to choosing partners in that regard with the establishing of a government holding company by the name “Ghana Integrated Bauxite and Aluminum Authority” , he is hopeful that the United States of America will be ready to be a partner in the several joint ventures that the Authority would be seeking to create.

“We have begun the process of establishing an Integrated Aluminium Industry (IAI) through a joint venture process to enable us to develop key critical growth-enhancing physical infrastructure while adding value to our mineral resources. We are almost at the end of establishing a government holding company by the name Ghana Integrated Bauxite and Aluminum Development Authority (GIBADA).

This holding company will be entrusted with all bauxite resources on behalf of government for such purposes” the Vice President said.

Secretary Wilbur Ross, in his address, said the United States is looking forward to a strong trade relationship with Ghana and the rest of Africa and to move away from the era of aid and grants to the African continent.

Ghana, he said, is on the right path with the decision of government to work towards an economy that will be anchored on increased trade activities rather than reliance on handouts and aid from the developed world.

The U.S. Secretary for Commerce, Wilbur Ross, is leading a sixty (60) member delegation from the President Donald Trump ‘President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa’ (PAC-DBIA) on a fact-finding mission to Ghana.

The visit is aimed at providing an opportunity for the delegation to gather insight into market opportunities and challenges faced by U.S. businesses in the fast-growing Ghanaian economy. The PAC-DBIA will use this information to provide President Trump with reliable and actionable recommendations to deepen commercial relationships in Ghana.