1. AMN Accra Mining Network
EXODUS OF MINING INDUSTRY
PROFFESSIONALS
35 percent of professionals in the mining sector
have exited or are no longer working in the
sector in Ghana. This was contained in a report
from a research by the Accra Mining Network.
The research conducted at the Network’s event
in July 2015 at the Ghana Chamber of Mines,
also found that, 50 percent of the mining
industry professionals, were also contemplating
exiting from the industry.
Ghana is well-endowed with natural resources
with a total area of 238,533 sq. km of which 5%
is covered by water. The country is endowed
with gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite,
manganese, silver, fish, rubber, hydropower,
petroleum, salt and limestone.
The Mining industry of Ghana accounts for 5%
of the country's GDP and minerals make up
37% of total exports, of which gold contributes
over 90% of the total mineral exports.
Considering the income tax deductions from the
workers in addition, this trend automatically
translates into a significant decrease in the
country’s GDP.
The industry has seen lack of investor
enthusiasm since 2012, and industry big wits
consider it an industry wide downturn but add
that the impact is more severe in Ghana either
because of the country’s relaxed labour laws or
lack of enforcement. Industry players also
believe that the phenomenon would come to
an end in the next 18 months but the industry
would not be the same should this exodus of
experienced professionals continue. The
foremost possibility speculated is that, if the
trend continues, there would be an
extraordinary shortage of mining industry
professionals by the end of the downturn. This
projected shortage is believed to lower the bar
for job requirements of the industry, and usher
in inexperienced professionals to take up
responsibilities beyond their capabilities after
the downturn, since most of the experienced
ones would have left by the end of the
downturn. This in turn would create a hiatus of
a period of non-transfer of the requisite
industry’s hands-on experience, which would
subsequently affect returns on future
investments and thence quickly initiate the next
downturn in the waiting in the cycle.
The research however did not look at what
these mining professionals leaving the industry
are going into, though most are currently
unemployed and somewhat disillusioned.
In an earlier event in April 2015 however, the
former CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Mines,
Rev. Dr. Joyce Aryee, admonished the mining
professionals to look at other minerals such as
Kaolin, Lithium and tantalite and refrain from
banking all their hopes and energy on gold. The
Accra Mining Network is a platform where
industry players in Ghana meet, learn and earn.
For further Information, contact the Accra Mining Network at info@accramining.net