Accra, Feb. 2, GNA - The Ghana Mineworkers Union (GMU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has requested that Government made it a pre-requisite for companies seeking mining rights to present a community development agenda as part of sustainable development programme. GMU has additionally called on the Government to review the apportionment of mineral revenues to ensure that all communities in which mines operated were allocated adequate funds for development. This was contained in a resolution adopted by the National Executive Council (NEC) of the GMU at the end of its meeting in Accra. The resolution said the current nine per cent of royalties paid to District Assemblies and Traditional Stools and Skins should be increased to 60 per cent, and proposed that District Assemblies in mining areas be tasked with specific development agendas with a representative body responsible for monitoring and evaluation.
It said this was necessary because infrastructural development in mining communities was generally poor in spite of the very high profit margins of some mining concerns.
The resolution noted that that there was a week linkage between the Mining Sector and the rest of the national economy because huge sums of money were used in importing tyres, safety boots, lime and overalls and other consumables for use in the mining companies, though Bonsa Tyres Company, which had the capacity to produce some inputs was grounded.
It consequently called on Government to revisit the public-private partnership policy to resuscitate existing distressed companies and also to create others to service the mining companies and other industries. The resolution also asked the Government to put in place the necessary incentives for investors to partner the Government in achieving the objective.
It called on the Government to review the current heavy leaning on Liberal Foreign Direct Investment policy to a more public-private partnership approach to grow the economy. The resolution expressed concern about the high levels of unemployment in mining communities, saying that this was mainly due to the use of high capacity machines and the lack of employable skills within these communities.
It thus requested that the Government impress upon mining companies to dedicate parts of their concessions to small-scale miners to operate under international best practices.
This, the resolution held would provide jobs as well as create peaceful co-existence between small and large-scale operators in the mining sector.
The resolution also called on the Government to institute the appropriate incentives which would attract mining companies to invest more in underground mining, which had a less devastating effect on the environment, communities and required more people to work. The GMU said the Government, as a matter of urgency, should remove the Ghana Consolidated Diamonds from the divestiture list and partner a strategic investor to capitalise the company to prevent it from total collapse, in order to save the country as well as the Akwatia community the socio-economic implications of it being divested.
The resolution commended the Government on its efforts to give public sector employees decent wages through the Public Sector Reform Programme but said the Government should expedite action on the initiative and to involve all stakeholders to ensure transparency and ownership.
The resolution also noted with concern the current power crisis and the consequent rationing exercise, saying that the effects of this on cost, employment and productivity was enormous.
It said while it appreciated various interventions intended to boost power supply in the future, the Volta River Authority and the Electricity Company of Ghana should review the rationing programme to ensure that sectors of the economy which generated high returns were given priority. 2 Feb. 07
