Ghana plans to invest US$1.5 billion in critical minerals value addition as part of efforts to expand local processing and reduce the export of raw minerals, Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has announced.
Presenting the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to Parliament on Thursday, Dr Forson said the investment would be made under Pillar Four of the government’s New Economy Programme, focusing on gold, manganese, bauxite and lithium.
He said the programme would adopt a phased approach to developing domestic refining and processing capacity, with specific targets for each mineral.
For gold, the government aims to refine at least 70 per cent of artisanal and small-scale gold locally by December 2027, increasing the proportion to 100 per cent by December 2028.
Dr Forson said the government also intended to prohibit the export of raw artisanal, small-scale and medium-scale gold from 2028.
In the manganese and bauxite sectors, the targets are to process at least 50 per cent of production locally by the end of 2028 and achieve full local processing by the end of 2030. The export of raw manganese and bauxite is also expected to be prohibited by 2030.
The programme further seeks to use locally mined bauxite as feedstock for alumina refining and aluminium smelting to strengthen Ghana’s domestic industrial capacity.
For lithium, the initial focus will be on establishing local refining capacity, followed by the progressive development of facilities to produce battery-grade chemicals, battery components and battery cells.
To support the planned investments, Dr Forson said the government would establish a 24-hour critical minerals processing enclave in the Western Region.
He also announced plans to commence construction of a railway line from Takoradi to Nyinahin in 2027 to connect major mineral-producing areas, including Nsuta and Awaso, and facilitate the transportation of manganese and bauxite to the Western Region for processing.
The plan also includes developing the Takoradi Port as Ghana’s principal maritime gateway to the Sahel.
From 2030, the railway line is expected to be extended from Nyinahin to Hamile in the Upper West Region, where a modern inland port will be established to serve Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and the wider Sahel region.
