On Wednesday, Upper East Regional Minister Hon. Akamugri Donatus Atanga conducted a working visit to Cardinal Namdini’s mining operations in the Talensi District. The minister was briefed on the company’s development works, preparations for commercial gold mining, resettlement plans, and corporate social responsibility initiatives in the region.
Cardinal Namdini, the first large-scale mine in northern Ghana and the country’s first greenfield mine since Newmont Akyem in 2013, holds one mining lease and seven prospecting licenses in the Upper East Region. It is currently the third-largest mine in Ghana and the largest single-stream gold mine in the country.
Speaking to the media after the tour, Hon. Akamugri expressed satisfaction with the company’s infrastructure and technological advancements. He urged the firm to increase local employment while commending its engagement with the community, despite concerns raised by some leaders.
“We engaged them (Cardinal Namdini), and we expressed our opinion on that, and they assured us that they are taking it on board,” the minister stated. “That is something heartwarming, and we expect the people of this community to cooperate with them, and they should also do their responsibility by ensuring that the corporate responsibility due to the area will be done for them.”
Hon. Akamugri emphasized the importance of dialogue between the community and the company, discouraging disruptive actions. “They have some members who are linking up with the company. We encourage that when they have issues, it is better they approach management so that they resolve them, other than going on a rampage or trying to cause destruction, because that will not help us.”
He further called on local youth to take advantage of employment and training opportunities provided by the mine. “The mines are there, the minerals are there, but if we don’t have the capacity to extract and people have come in with the capacity to extract, let us cooperate with them so that we can benefit and the community can benefit.”
“So I encourage that all youth in this area should try and make themselves available. In fact, they said that those who do not have the skill, they have some training programmes they take them through. And that is so heartwarming. So I expect that the youth in this area should try and associate themselves with them and get employment through the training and other things, even if they don’t have the needed skills, so that we can cooperate with them (Cardinal) to develop this area for us.”
