The Inter-Mines First Aid and Safety Competition has been held at Tarkwa Goldfields in the Western Region. The competition is an annual event held by the mining industry to educate the citizenry on basic first aid tips as well as foster consciousness of safety in their everyday lives.

The event is held by the Ghana Chamber of Mines in collaboration with the Inspectorate Division of the Minerals Commission (IDMC) and the St. John Ambulance (Ghana).

The competition, among other purposes, seeks to underscore the importance of safety in the mining industry and also educate employees and host communities on health, first aid and safety practices.

The competition, which has the endorsement of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, was in two parts: First, the Oral First Aid and Safety Contest where the various participating mining teams – as well as the community teams – showed how well they know their safety and first aid tips. This was followed by a practical competition by the teams where they proved their mettle in handling emergency situations.

While the oral quiz contest was broadcast live on national television, the practical contest took place at Goldfields Ghana-Tarkwa Mine. The 2018 Inter-Mines First Aid and Safety Competition coincided with the 90th anniversary of the Chamber  under the theme: “Safety: A Bedrock of Responsible Mining.”

The participating mining teams charged the atmosphere with songs with each of the teams claiming victory even ahead of the competition.

Registration, balloting of teams and reading of competition rules was handled by the St. Johns Ambulance. The teams chose a case scenario enclosed in an envelope and the content was read out to

them. Each participating team then had a unique case scenario to work on.

Addressing the gathering, General Manager of Gold fields Tarkwa Mines, Stephen Osei-Bempah assured the mining firms will continue to uphold safety and first aid skills to further reduce occupational injuries.

“The mining industry is committed to a workplace that is safe and free of occupational risk to employees, visitors, host communities and all stakeholders with the objective of eliminating preventable occupational injuries. Our objective as mining companies is to achieve zero harm,” he said.

With a total workforce of about 5,000 employees and contractors, the company has been able to reduce injuries from 62 in 2010 to only 5 in 2017.

Nana Akua Asante of Golden Star School won the first prize with Adofo Kwabena Dadzie picking the second prize of the quiz competition.

In the practical session, Golden Star picked the first prize with Gold fields Tarkwa Mines picking the second prize. Asanko Gold Mine placed third while Newmont Ahafo Mines came 4th.

In the community event, Goldfields Tarkwa Mines came first with Golden Star picking the second position. Newmont Ahafo Mines picked the 3rd position while Asanko Mines picked the 4th position.

The celebration continued as their teams carried out their tasks.

Then came the moment of glory where the participating teams had to be crowned for their efforts.

The first set of recipients of awards were school children who took part in the qui competition.