Geological Services Department to be resourced

Mr Kwadwo Adjei Darko, Minister of Mines, on Friday said the Geological Survey Department (GSD) would be given resources to carry out its research activities.

"The Geological Survey Department is the soul of the mining industry and frantic effort is been put in place to equip it so that it can carry out its activities to increase productivity in the country," he said.

Mr Darko was addressing staff of the Geological Survey Department during his first visit to the Department in Accra. He said the GSD would be given adequate funding to look for mineral resources of the country.

Mr Darko said the Ministry would be doing a disservice to the nation if it failed to tackle its problems since it had contributed to the discovery of most of the mineral wealth of the country.

The Minister said as a measure to revamping the Department, a new mines law, which sought to make the Department competitive and attractive, had been put before Parliament.

Mr Philip Yaw Oduro Amoako, Acting Director of GSD, said that since the inception of the Department in 1913, it had been able to identify some of the mineral resources the country had been mining.

He said that the hydroelectric potential of the country's waters was identified by the Department and also recommended the building of the Akosombo Dam.

Mr Amoako said apart from providing geological needs, the Department provided information on good sites for heavy construction, engineering works, underground water and geo-tourism.

He appealed to the Minister to help them acquire a standby generator for the Earthquake Unit.