AngloGold Ashanti Chairman, Sipho Pityana, has called on stakeholders in Africa’s mining industry to create enabling environment for the sector to flourish.

Mr Pityana said this when he delivered the annual Kwame Nkrumah Business in Africa lecture at the University of Ghana last week.

“It is no secret that riches in the ground only create wealth for society when they are extracted in an appropriate manner: this requires amongst other things enabling policy, transparent and accountable governance, competitive investment capital, and the appropriate human capital,” Mr. Pityana said.

He said transparent discussions about responsible mining and shared value is needed, if Ghana and other African countries because business competitiveness and social and community wellbeing are inter-dependent.

These are the essential ingredients that will allow industry to chart a course that will allow it to reach its potential, and to allow all stakeholders to benefit, he added.

“It falls on leaders, be they elected political officials, company management, or labour and community leaders, to understand the constant trade-offs and accommodation required to fashion profitable outcomes that can in turn lead to equitable development outcomes,” Mr. Pityana said.

He revealed that at AngloGold Ashanti this is made easier because the mining giant’s company values unambiguously mandate leaders to do so.

“If we are to treat each other with dignity and respect, to value diversity, to mine responsibly and to aspire to leave communities better off for our being there, then we have to stay focused on ensuring equitable outcomes both for today and for tomorrow. In this way I do believe that we can be the development catalyst that we aspire to be,” he said.