The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has urged Parliament to halt the ratification of the Revised Lithium Agreement between Ghana and Barari, currently before the House.

According to the economic and policy think tank, this is critical because the agreement in its current form is not only a continuation of the colonial-type agreements Ghana has had in its gold and oil sectors, but also failed to comply with the requirements of major international frameworks signed and ratified by Ghana.

In a statement, the IEA drew important lessons from countries such as Norway, Chile, Botswana, and other Middle Eastern countries.

“The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1803 (1962), United Nations General Assembly Resolution 3281 (1974) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Other Protocols all enjoin resource-endowed countries to exploit their resources for their benefit. Indeed, Article 21(1) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights stipulates that under no circumstances shall a people be deprived of their right to exploit their wealth and natural resources in their exclusive interest”, it said.

“Article 21(5) further provides that state parties under the Charter must take steps to eliminate all forms of foreign economic exploitation to enable their peoples to fully benefit from the advantages derived from these natural resources. The IEA seeks a review of the lithium agreement to ensure greater state and local ownership and control within these international frameworks”, it explained.

Government Urged to Set Up State-Owned Firm

Secondly, the Institute called on the government to set up a State-Owned Ghana Lithium Company (GLC) to lead effective exploitation and management of lithium along the entire value chain. “The GLC should be mandated to develop the entire lithium value chain from raw lithium to batteries in Ghana”.

Thirdly, the IEA stressed that there is a need to identify, through competitive bidding, a consortium of Ghanaian contract miners, including African Mining Services, BCM Ghana Limited, Engineers & Planners, Quantum LC Limited, Rocksure International, Underground Mining Alliance, etc. to mine and manage the lithium under a service contract for Ghana.

“There is also the need to speed up the ongoing legislative and policy review process to fast-track operationalisation of the above recommendations”, it added.

In conclusion, the IEA believes there can be no better time for Ghana to own its lithium wealth with a view to leveraging it for industrial transformation.

“Our call is simple: Ghana must take ownership of its lithium, contract the private sector to mine on its behalf, and develop the entire lithium value chain in order to derive maximum benefits from the lithium discovery”, it alluded.