Ghana is shifting its mining strategy from exporting raw minerals to retaining more value through local processing, refining and manufacturing, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has said.

Speaking at the Mining in Motion Summit in Accra, Armah-Kofi Buah invited investors to partner Ghana and other African countries not just in extraction, but in building industries and developing skilled local workforce.

“The world needs Africa’s minerals. Africa welcomes the world’s partnership. Come and invest. Come and build with us,” he stated.

He said success in the sector would no longer be measured by volumes exported, but by how much value remained in-country through local content, procurement, gold traceability and expanded refining capacity, including opportunities in aluminium and lithium.

The Minister disclosed that Cabinet had approved a revised Minerals and Mining Policy and endorsed amendments to the Minerals and Mining Act for Parliamentary consideration, covering licensing reforms, increased local participation and mandatory community development agreements for mining firms.

He added that government was intensifying the fight against illegal mining, restoring degraded lands, and supporting legal small-scale miners under the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development Programme (rCOMSDEP).

Representing the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Omanhene of Essumeja, Odeneho Nana Okyere Kusi Ntrama, welcomed the reforms but cautioned that they must be implemented with transparency and efficiency to maintain investor confidence, create jobs and protect labour standards.

He warned that uncertainty and partisan disputes could increase risks for the industry, and called for technology adoption and development of local expertise.