Fight Against Galamsey: Dr Steve Manteaw Commends Political Parties for Adopting 40% of UKGGP Policy Recommendations in Manifestos
Dr Steve Manteaw, Technical Advisor to the UK-Ghana Gold Programme, has praised the incorporation of key regulatory proposals by Ghana’s leading political parties, as they seek to address the challenges facing the country’s artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sector.
Speaking at a post-manifesto engagement with political parties organised by the UK-Ghana Gold Programme (UKGGP), Dr Manteaw revealed that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) each adopted 40% (six proposals) of the 15 recommendations presented to them by the UKGGP, while the Movement for Change implemented four proposals.
The post-manifesto engagement sought to assess political parties’ commitment to closing regulatory gaps and enhancing governance in the ASGM sector, which has been plagued by inefficiencies.
“We want political parties to be serious about the commitments they’re making, and not just for political gains,” Dr Manteaw noted. He underscored the need for a follow-up meeting after the elections to create a roadmap for the implementation of the policies, with the UKGGP pledging its support to whichever party wins.
Among the recommendations discussed was the decentralisation of regulatory frameworks. Dr Manteaw criticised the current system, which requires miners in remote areas to travel to Accra to obtain licences. He, however, acknowledged progress with the establishment of a new Minerals Commission office in the Savannah region but expressed concern about the commission’s ability to staff these new offices adequately.
Speaking to the media and touching on the NPP’s promise to set up a Minerals Development Bank to provide financing assistance to small-scale miners, Dr Manteaw cautioned against the high costs of setting up a new institution, especially under the constraints of Ghana’s IMF programme, suggesting instead that existing banks like the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) and National Investment Bank (NIB) could be utilised.
Broader Context of the Engagement
The objectives of the Post-Manifesto Engagement with Political Parties organized by the United Kingdom-Ghana Gold Programme (UKGGP) were to obtain feedback from political parties on commitments they have made in relation to natural resource and environmental governance, especially for the UKGGP, the artisanal small-scale mining (ASGM) reform proposals from the previous engagement at Royal Senchi.
It was also to discuss with political parties, operational issues related to the commitments they have made for better political communication and implementation in government.
Additionally, it was also to discuss how the UKGGP can support the implementation of the ASGM-related commitments in the manifestoes and further create awareness of the social dimensions of illegal and unregulated mining and their threat to national and sub-regional security.
