Lithium in Ghana can help in the war against climate change – STRANEK-AFRICA
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Mining is a chief contributor to the Ghana’s economy apart from it being a major economic activity in Ghana. Prior to 1983, most Ghanaian mining production was owned by the state which led to lack of investment and recapitalisation. The lack of investment and recapitalisation brought the migration of persons with the requisite technical knowhow to other jurisdictions. Today, there has been a paradigm shift and the mining industry of Ghana contributes 5% to the country’s Gross Domestic Product and the minerals account for 37% of the total export. Apart from Gold which is the most commercially abused mineral in Ghana, inter alia, manganese, bauxite, diamonds are some of the minerals which are mined in Ghana.
STRANEK-Africa has discovered that there are minerals which for a long time, have been extracted to battle climate change. Minerals such as graphite, lithium, cobalt et cetera are some of the minerals which are used to produce low-carbon technologies like electric vehicles, energy storage facilities among others. Most of these minerals are produced in developing countries.
In 2018, Ghana discovered a new mineral, lithium through the Ghana Minerals Commission. This detection was made in the Volta, Western and Ashanti Regions and according to the Ghana Minerals Commission, the discovery was during a nationwide exploration.
Indeed, if lithium is produced in commercial quantities in Ghana, it will contribute immensely to supplying materials which can be used to fight climate change. Ghana can play an important role in the electric car manufacturing business which is part of the low-carbon technologies.
Natural resource curse should not be Ghana’s portion where Ghana will heavily depend on mineral rents and revenues including unprocessed raw materials.
It is therefore the position of STRANEK-Africa that there ought to be transparency and accountability so far as mining particularly lithium is concerned in the war against climate change. This can be achieved by depersonalising the process by which the application to mine is concerned.
Satellites must be set up by the appropriate mining authorities to watch keenly the sites identified to have greater potential in terms of lithium. The intention behind these monitoring should be about discovering the mineral in commercial quantities.
Unregulated small-scale miners must be prevented from encroaching the mineral, lithium so that Ghana will be able to benefit immensely from this rich mineral which is essential in the fight against climate change.
Surely, we should all be involved in building motherland Ghana.
STRANEK-AFRICA’S POSITION ON LITHIUM IN GH AND CLIMATE CHANGE (1)
Signed.
Nii Tettey Tetteh Esq. LL.M
Executive Director
+233 559 042 914
Eyram Norglo
Director of Research
+233 266 119 773
-Filasconews.com/2022
