Dr. John Kwakye, the Director of Research at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), expressed his approval of Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s commitment to achieving complete Ghanaian ownership of natural resources.
In his recent statement on the X platform, he emphasized that the IEA will diligently uphold this commitment to prevent it from being just an empty promise when the Vice President assumes the presidency.
He further expressed his support for Dr Bawumia’s proposition for Ghana to actively explore and take ownership of its natural resources, a policy that has been advocated for a considerable period of time.
We would be following closely to ensure that the proposal doesn’t remain a mere campaign promise.
Dr Bawumia said his administration would focus on a paradigm shift in the country’s natural resource management and ownership through policy framework to ensure that Ghanaians maximise benefits from her mineral endowment.
He pledged this commitment while having breakfast with religious figures in the Eastern Region on Monday, as a component of his countrywide campaign journey.
I am going to refocus our paradigm for natural resource management. For the most part, Ghana has not maximised the benefits of our natural resources. Since the days of the Portuguese in the 15th century, gold has always been taken out of Ghana. We haven’t benefitted much from our natural resources; I am going to change that paradigm. I am going to bring a bigger focus on ownership of our natural resources. It is as if right now we don’t own our natural resources. I believe that if we do the exploration; and we are going to empower our universities and the Geological Service Department to do the exploration, once we explore that we have seven gold belts that we haven’t yet discovered.
