Hon. Chairman,
Hon. Deputy Minister of Finance,
Hon. Members of Parliament
Representatives of Mining Companies
Members of the GhEITI
Distinguished Invited Guests
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen,

15th May, 2015

Government has been asked to take immediate steps to begin the process of incorporating Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) clauses into Ghana's mining laws. The addition of those clauses will protect mining communities from the many of the violations they suffer as a result of mining activities. FPIC will also equip the mining communities to protect their rights to ownership of land and rights to livelihood.

15th May, 2015

Ghana's quest to maximize benefits from its oil and gas resources can be given a boost if there is a strategic approach to the implementation of the Local content Law, Dr John Gatsi, a Chartered Economist and lecturer at University of Cape Coast, has submitted.

Government has been advised to put in place stringent measures to compel small scale miners to pay some royalties to the State. Although small scale miners account for over 34% of gold production, they do not pay mineral royalty. “Attempt should be made to obtain some revenue (royalty) from small scale mineral gold producers. The rate of extraction of gold by the small scale artisanal and miners mean the state is losing it resources without any compensatory revenue”.

The Petroleum Commission has been advised to urgently set up an online repository where information on upstream petroleum blocks could be accessed. The Petroleum Commission is the upstream regulator of Ghana's petroleum sector. It is mandated to regulate, manage and co-ordinate all activities in the upstream petroleum industry for the overall benefit and welfare of Ghanaians.

Pressure continues to mount on Parliament to pass the Mineral Development Fund (MDF) Bill to prevent the facility, which has existed for decades without a law, from further manipulation. The latest demand is contained in the 2012/2013 Ghana Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (GHEITI) for the Mining Sector Report, which was launched in Accra on Tuesday.

The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has been asked to publish its investment plan with its associated cost to prevent any misconstruing in respect of unspent cash by the public. This was the recommendation made regarding GNPC in the Ghana Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative(GHEITI) 2012/2013 Report on the Oil and Gas Sector, prepared by Boas and Associates and launched in Accra recently.

Mr. Seth Terkper Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, on Tuesday said government is working assiduously to ensure that the enhanced revenues from the country’s natural resources are prudently managed and utilized for the benefit of the people. He said revenues from natural resources are to benefit people who are negatively impacted by the activities of extractive sector companies.

This was contained in a keynote address read by Mr Franklin Ashiadey, National Coordinator of the Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI), at the dissemination workshop on the 2012/2013 audit reports of the initiative on mining and oil and gas sectors at Half Assini.

Members of the Ghana EITI National Steering Committee, Good Morning, it is my pleasure to welcome to the first meeting of the Steering Committee in 2015 and also to wish you a happy new year.

2.    This certainly is a good opportunity to set the tone for the months ahead and provide general guidance on how we want to chat the future of the Ghana EITI going forward, especially for 2015. Generally, these Steering Committee meetings are very important because it provides our partners from Civil Society and Companies the opportunity and the platform to bring their perspective to bear on the governance of the extractive sector and in shaping the future of Ghana EITI.

Mr Chairman,
Chief Directors,
Hon. Members of Parliament,
Members of the Steering Committee of GHEITI,
The Media
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is an honour for me to be here for the launch of the 2012/2013 Ghana HEITI Reports for Mining and Oil and Gas Sectors. Following the extension of the EITI to the oil and gas sector in 2013, the Ministry of Petroleum has been following and participating the activities of GHEITI with keen interest for the purpose of ensuring transparency in the production crude oil in the country and utilisation of oil revenue.