The debate over the need for a thorough cost-benefit assessment of mining was re-ignited last Friday when panellists of a symposium at the 63rd Annual New Year School and Conference at the University of Ghana made strong submissions to the effect that mining has been more costly than beneficial to the nation. The Co-ordinator of the Third World Network (TWN), Africa, Dr Yao Graham; a senior lecturer at the Department of Economics of the University of Ghana, Dr Daniel Twerefou, and the Executive Director of WACAM, Daniel Owusu-Koranteng, were unanimous that the cost of mining to the nation far outweighed its benefit. The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Dr Tony Aubynn, however, held a different opinion, contending that mining had made significant contributions to the national economy. The symposium was on the topic, “’Yellow Gold’ management for the past half century: Implication for the ‘Black Gold’”. Setting the ball rolling, Dr Graham said minerals were finite resources and so they ought to be exploited in a manner to ensure sustained growth and development of the nation. He stressed the need for revenue accruing from mining to be distributed equitably, adding that the exploitation of minerals should enhance the livelihoods of local communities. According to Dr Graham, the state has a weak capacity to regulate mining companies, and stressed the need to strengthen the regulatory regime for mining operations. He said sometimes, it was better to leave minerals unmined, especially if the mining would be more costly to the environment and communities. When he took his turn, Mr Owusu-Koranteng stirred emotions in the R.S. Amegashie Hall at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS) where the symposium took place, as some of the information he presented startled the audience. His submission that mining companies paid 50Gp per annum as ground rent for a one-kilometre square of land baffled the audience as they responded with spontaneous remarks of disapproval. Mr Owusu-Koranteng said mining companies were not development agencies and so they were not in the country to develop communities. He said the technology shift from underground mining to surface mining, which he described as large-scale galamsey, had created lots of environmental problems in mining communities. He said in assessing the cost and benefit of mining, it was important to also consider the destruction of the cultural and spiritual heritage of mining communities that were intangible but invaluable. Mr Owusu-Koranteng said although the government had been very successful in wooing investors into the mining sector, it had woefully failed to regulate them effectively. For his part, Dr Twerefou said it was important to put value on the social and environmental impact of mining and not just the benefits, adding that the impact of mining was inter-generational. He observed that only 22 per cent of revenue accruing from mining was injected into the national economy as against about 98 per cent from cocoa. He said irrespective of the revenue mining generated, the sector was not able to create the needed jobs for graduates. Dr Twerefou expressed concern about poor value addition to minerals to derive more economic benefits from them. Unlike the three panellists, Dr Aubynn was handicapped in his submissions because, as the chairman for the symposium, he did not have the luxury of time and preparation to mount a solid defence for mining companies. Moreover, he had taken a position not to be on the defensive, but rather allow the panellists to express their candid opinions. He could, however, not resist an invitation from one of the participants to respond to some of the issues raised to enlighten the audience, and when he mounted the podium, he dismissed some of the issues raised by the panellists as exaggeration. While admitting that mining had not benefitted the nation as much as people expected, he believed the main issue that had to be addressed, as he put it in a local mantra, was “na who cause am?” Dr Aubynn urged Ghanaians to assess the cost-benefit of mining dispassionately and not just from one perspective.