Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Yusif Sulemana, has reiterated government’s commitment to ensuring that the country’s mineral wealth translates into tangible benefits for all Ghanaians particularly the youth, women, and mining communities.

Addressing participants at the Mining and Minerals Convention held at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, Sulemana stressed that mining must go beyond revenue generation and foreign investment, serving instead as a “catalyst for industrialisation, infrastructural development, and community empowerment.”

“We believe mining must continue to serve as a catalyst for industrialisation, infrastructural development and community empowerment,” he said.

He emphasised a people-centred approach to natural resource governance, aimed at fostering inclusive and sustainable development.

“Hence, we are committed to ensuring that the benefits of Ghana’s mineral wealth are felt not only by investors but, more importantly, by the ordinary Ghanaian our youth, our women, and very importantly, our mining communities.”

The Deputy Minister highlighted a decisive shift in the country’s approach to natural resource governance, moving away from legacy models rooted in colonial extraction patterns.

“This is a paradigm shift beyond the colonial 'dig and ship' model, to a value-added approach,” he asserted.