The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Joyce Aryee has cautioned Ghanaians not to rely on gold as the sole natural mineral resource for foreign exchange. She disclosed that gold alone was fetching about 95 percent of foreign exchange for the country.“This mono economy where gold is the sole commodity for foreign exchange is bad. The salt industry should also be exploited to bring in more foreign exchange,” she added.

Ms Aryee stated that the current situation was not good for the country since “Ghana could lose a lot of its foreign exchange income if gold loses its value on the international market.” She therefore implored government to direct its attention to other natural mineral resources such as salt, which is also on high demand by oil exporting countries.

Ms Aryee, who was addressing a press conference in Kumasi, educated media personnel about the state of the mining industry and its contributions to national development. She admonished Municipal, metropolitan and District Assemblies where gold is mined to make their development agenda known to the mining companies.

According to her, the mining firms as part of their social corporate responsibilities would contribute to the development of communities but “it was up to the communities to make the right approach.” The CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Mines noted that the mining firms had over the years contributed to the development of communities through the construction of roads, schools and health institutions, among others.

She further revealed that the mining firms had provided employment opportunities to youth, adding that the lack of training was preventing them from employing more people.

“The huge automated trucks used by the mining firms can only be operated by people with formal education. Some of these young people who apply for work are not educated and can therefore not operate these machines,’ Ms. Aryee emphasized.

Source:Peacefmonline.com

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