The Centre for Public Interest Law (CEPIL), a not-for-profit organisation, in collaboration with Wacam and Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), has organised a validation workshop aimed at addressing human rights violations in mining communities within Newmont Ghana Gold Limited (NGGL) Ahafo and Akyem Projects.
The study, when finalised, will help assess the nature and extent of these violations and propose recommendations for addressing them and improving accountability, governance and community resilience in affected areas.
Held in Sunyani on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, the workshop brought together about 40 representatives of regulatory institutions, women’s groups, chiefs and queen mothers from the Ahafo region
It sought to solicit their views and recommendations to inform the completion of the study.
Speaking during the event, the Associate Executive Director of Wacam, Mrs. Hannah Owusu-Koranteng, cautioned that Ghana’s mineral resource exploitation could become a curse if not managed carefully.
She expressed concern over the numerous human rights violations in mining communities, stressing the need to strengthen mining laws to ensure the country reaps the full benefits of mining.
She emphasised that strengthened laws will foster peaceful coexistence between mining companies and communities, allowing them to work together harmoniously.
While acknowledging the contribution of mining to Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the Associate Executive Director of Wacam called for an urgent action to address the alarming rise in human rights violations within the mining sector.
Dr. Samuel Obiri, a consultant for a study on ‘Assessing Environmental and Human Rights Effects of Newmont Ghana Gold Limited (NGGL) Ahafo and Akyem Projects,’ presented the key findings of his draft report.
The report revealed widespread human rights abuses, shrinking civic space, and inadequate and unfair compensation payments to affected communities within the operational areas of Newmont’s Ahafo and Akyem projects.
According to him, many of the residents in communities within Newmont Ahafo and Akyem projects’ operational areas have been adversely impacted by the company’s land acquisition processes.
He noted that regarding Newmont’s land acquisition process, most respondents in the Akyem area reported being informed by the company officials or local chiefs that their land contained a gold belt, and that the government had already granted the company permit to mine the area.
“In the case of Newmont Ahafo North, about 80 of the respondents said that their lands were taken over through compulsory land acquisition after they failed to consent to compensation packages being offered by officials of the company,” the consultant indicated.
Furthermore, Dr. Obiri said the presence of Newmont’s mines in the Ahafo and Akyem areas has led to a shrinking civic space, hindering community engagement. He revealed that most respondents felt constrained by the mine’s presence.
Regarding compensation, he said respondents claimed that delays in payment violated their fundamental human rights, leaving many of them who have been affected frustrated.
This, he went on to add, left many of the affected community people frustrated.
The report noted that these delays constituted a flagrant disregard of Article 20 (2a) of the 1992 Constitution, which emphasises prompt payment of compensation.
Meanwhile, the participants urged government and Newmont to intensify efforts to address the escalating human rights violations in the Ahafo North and Akyem areas.
They emphasised that this would foster a harmonious coexistence between the company and local communities, allowing them to conduct their activities peacefully.
The participants also called on the regulatory institutions to ensure that mining companies strictly comply with the laws governing mining in Ghana.
They explained that such a move will help prevent human rights infractions commonly perpetrated in mining communities.
The Executive Director of Wacam, Mr. Daniel Owusu-Koranteng, encouraged mining community members to unite and demand accountability from mining companies.
“We need to come together to protect the environment and our fundamental
human rights,” he asserted.
He intimated that it was about time for the country thought about future generations and stopped the “blame game and spoke truth to power.”