Kumasi-Ghana, Nov. 9, GNA – The Newmont Africa, Ahafo South Mine says a total of 830 structures have been verified for compensation as the mining firm moves to expand its Tailings Storage Facility (TSF).
Out of this, 527 chits have been processed for payments, 373 have already been paid, while 279 structures are eligible for resettlement.
Mr Samuel Osei, the Communications and External Relations Manager of the Mine, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the company had settled several hundreds of people since it started operations in 2006.
The expansion of the TSF project was, therefore, an important move to enable the mining firm to store enough waste to be able to produce more gold.
Communities within the project area are Oseiwusukrom, Yarogurima, Ananekrom, Daudakrom, Dokyikrom, and New and Old Daudakrom.
Mr Osei said although the company was committed to meeting the demands of the affected communities, mounting of illegal structures (speculative structures) had delayed the resettlement and compensation processes.
Mr Osei explained that the company’s 18th July 2019 drone footage, which was used to determine eligibility for the 9th July 2019 cut-off date, indicated that 164 structures were now eligible for full cash compensation.
Again, there were 292 structures identified with extensions after the change in cut-off from the July 5-9, 2019 cut-off.
Mr Osei pledged the company’s commitment to ensuring that it operated within the remit of the law to benefit all the peripheral communities.
“The issues at stake must be dealt with and we commit to do so through peaceful dialogue. We ask our stakeholders to do the same so that we can cooperate and get on with the work,” he appealed.
Mr Ahmed Nantogmah, the Director of External Relations and Communication, Ghana Chamber of Mines, told the GNA that speculative activities were bad for Ghana as a mining destination.
The speculative structures, he believed, were delaying the resettlement process, explaining that the more the process delayed the project, the higher chances of negative effects on Ghana’s income earning on mining.
