Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, has called for a fundamental rethink of the concept of social licence in Ghana's mining communities.

He explained that the country's young people must have a meaningful stake in the wealth generated from their natural resources.

Mr Gyamfi said the growing disconnect between the mineral wealth extracted from mining communities and the economic opportunities available to young people posed a serious threat to the long-term acceptance of mining operations.

“For me, the strongest reason to rethink social licence is the youth question,” he said.

He argued that young people living in mining communities regularly witness mineral wealth being extracted from their communities but often struggle to find decent employment, acquire relevant skills or gain opportunities to participate meaningfully in the economic benefits generated by mining.

“In our mining communities, young people see wealth leave their land every day. Yet too many do not see any path to decent work, skills, ownership, and a meaningful future,” Mr Gyamfi said.

Mr Gyamfi described the situation as a dangerous contradiction that could undermine trust between mining companies and the communities in which they operate.

“That contradiction is dangerous, it is not fair, and it is not sustainable,” he said.

The GoldBod CEO argued that this legitimacy would be difficult to sustain if young people believed the mining industry had little place for them beyond low-skilled or temporary employment.

“Social licence cannot survive where you believe mining has no place for them except as casual labourers and bystanders,” he said.

The National Mining Dialogue event is organised by Asempa 94.7 FM and its flagship programme, Ekosiisen, in partnership with Semmis DS and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.

The CEO also criticised the perception of some young people in mining communities as merely troublesome agitators or security risks, saying such attitudes could further deepen the disconnect between the industry and the communities from which mineral resources are extracted.

He pointed instead to the need for opportunities that provide decent work, technical and vocational skills, ownership and a meaningful long-term economic future.

Such opportunities could enable young people to participate in the wider mining value chain rather than remaining on the margins of an industry operating on their doorstep.

Mr Gyamfi called for a fundamental shift in how the industry understands social licence.

“The social licence must therefore be reimagined as a development compact with the youth,” he said.

Mr Gyamfi also challenged the tendency to view young people in mining communities primarily through the lens of security.

He argued that treating dissatisfied young people as troublesome agitators or security threats without addressing the underlying economic concerns could further damage relations between mining companies and host communities.