A member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwadwo Poku, has warned against government ownership of mining ventures, arguing that Ghana should instead partner with the private sector to ensure the success of locally funded mining companies.

Speaking on the JoyNews AM Show on Wednesday, March 11, Mr Poku said Ghana’s experience with state-owned enterprises demonstrates that government-run institutions often struggle to operate efficiently, making them unsuitable to lead investments in the mining sector.

His comments come as the government presented to Parliament the Minerals and Mining Royalty Regulations, 2025, a new Legislative Instrument aimed at introducing a sliding-scale mineral royalty regime. The proposal allows royalty rates on resources such as gold and lithium to adjust automatically depending on global commodity prices.

While acknowledging the push to increase Ghanaian participation in mining, Mr Poku emphasised that the approach must be practical and guided by expertise rather than sentiment.

“Most Ghanaian companies that are doing well have experts managing certain positions,” he said. “Go to Spintex, go to the North Industrial Area, look at the management of the people running these big industries and see if the leadership is Ghanaian. It’s not.”

According to him, many successful local firms rely on foreign expertise to run critical operations, a model he believes should also guide efforts to expand Ghanaian investment in mining.

Mr Poku argued that instead of the government directly owning mines, the state should partner with the private sector under a public-private partnership (PPP) model.

“If we want to invest Ghanaian money into Ghanaian-owned mines, it shouldn’t be owned by the government,” he said. “Government can de-risk the investment, maybe bring 40%, and let the private sector take 60%. That way, the industry will be sustainable.”

He further suggested that large state investment programmes could allocate substantial funding to such partnerships to encourage industrial growth.

Citing struggling state-owned enterprises to support his argument, Mr Poku referenced the Cocoa Processing Company, which produces the Golden Tree brand, comparing it with private sector chocolate producer Niche Cocoa Industry Ltd.

“Compare Niche, which has been coming up over the last five to ten years, to the Cocoa Processing Company,” he said, noting that private businesses have demonstrated stronger growth and efficiency.

His remarks come amid renewed debate on how Ghana can maximise value from its mineral resources while increasing local participation in the sector.