Can Ghana Industrialize through Gold production?

I am going to think aloud. If you agree with me I will be happy and if you don’t make alternative suggestion.

For the sake of referring to your comment or suggestion I am numbering my ideas:

1.    Ghana has a lot of gold in the ground so let us train Ghanaians to do sustainable mining to provide primary employment for about 500,000 people (illegal “gallamsey” was employing over 3 million people)

2.    Only a few companies in each region will be licensed to operate these mines according to the gold resources in the region and directly employ citizens in which the Ghana government will have a 10% free carry interest on behalf of the people of Ghana.

3.    All mining operations will have a built-in reclamation and afforestation.

4.    All mining will have aquaculture built into the scheme to ensure that craters, dips, dams are converted to resource and aid inland fishing

5.    All gold produced will be sold to PMMC guaranteed by Bank of Ghana.

6.    PMMC will take their commissions in cash.

7.    All Ghana Government taxes and levies shall be in Gold and placed in reserve to support the Ghana Cedi.

8.    All government dividends shall be in Gold

9.    All reclamation and afforestation will be in blocks of 25 acres and executed by independent organisations trained for that purpose.

10.  Fish farms under the inland fishing arising out of craters and dams will also be handled by specialised organisations

11.  Value addition businesses must be set up not as state owned but as private businesses with a 10% free carry interest by the Government of Ghana on behalf of the citizens.

12.  If on 40% of all gold produced in Ghana is subjected to value addition that will fetch Ghana more than the total value of Gold produced every year.

13.  The value of new income to Ghana as a result of the creation of 500,000 earning an average of $500 per month that is $250 million per month giving a total of $3 billion per annum. Applying a conservative annual PAYE tax of 20% is $500 million per annum

14.  For 500,000 primary employment created in mining, we can conservatively put secondary employment at 2 million with average income per month of $200 that is $200 million per month totaling $2.4 billion.

15.  Strategy is not to create large gold mining companies but small companies but scale up to large mines only for those that are able to explore and hit hard rock gold.

16.  No mining is allowed to commence without adequate exploration with proven ore reserves in excess of 100,000 ounces of Gold and at $1,100 a concession must be valued at $110 million before mining starts.

17.  All mines must publish or at least publicly state additions to proven reserves, acreage of reclaimed land, acreage of re afforested mined-out land on annual basis.

18.  Gold mines must state how much of their gold is exported without value addition and pay a penalty tax raw export.

From the points above, we can use the gold placed in reserve to stabilize our currency, use the tax revenues to develop our railways and ports, take steps to replicate the success in adding value to gold and ultimately ban the export of key primary commodities and metals including diamonds and bauxite. Ghana has successfully banned the export of round logs and the result is there for all to see. Ghana can industrialize earlier than we think. Pleased add to it or subtract from it. Your view is highly appreciated