Mr. George Owusu Asante of Akyem Juaso, the National Vice-President of the Citizens Committee Network (CiCoNet), was in a state of disbelief when ACA’s Legal Officer, Mustapha Mahamah, broke the news to him that Kibi Goldfields Ltd (KGL) have finally fully compensated him for his lost lands, which were taken about two and half years ago by Kibi’s sub-contractor, BSD Mining Services.
“I’m speechless, and I don’t even know what to say except to thank God and ACA for the relentless fight for my rights all these years. The advocacy mounted by the Citizens Committee Network (CiCoNet) has really paid off, and I’m so grateful”, Mr Asante said.
Mr. Asante is among several people in Juaso and nearby communities, such as Sagyemase and Nsuapemso, who lost their farmlands to mining companies in the past few years. In most of the cases, several of the affected landowners were paid only a small fraction of the replacement cost of their land and crops as compensation, and the mining companies failed to respect the procedures for acquiring land as set out in Ghana’s Minerals and Mining Act 2006, Act 703. The loss of land without adequate compensation has deprived entire households of their main sources of livelihood.
Background
On behalf of the people of Juaso, Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA) addressed petitions to the Minerals Commission and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in July 2022, complaining that KGL and its subsidiaries and sub-contractors had repeatedly violated laws and regulations relating to the public disclosure of mining plans on community land, as well as the prior negotiation and adequate compensation of those whose surface rights are disturbed by new mining operations. The Ministry responded with a promise to hold KGL and other mining companies to account but has yet to take concrete action.
In 2023, the CiCoNet of Juaso and the nearby communities of Sagyimase and Nsuapemso filed a complaint with the Minerals Commission about mining companies’ unfilled mining pits. The Minerals Commission undertook a tour of the affected sites and ordered KGL and others to remediate them.
Media campaign
In July 2023, CiCoNet led a team of Ghanaian journalists to some mining areas in Juaso and Nsuapemso to witness the devastating effects of mining activities in these areas, especially with regard to the havoc created by uncovered mining pits, diversion of water bodies, the destruction of farmlands and mining activities close to settlements.
This elicited immediate response from the Minerals Commission, which then began engaging ACA, CiCoNet and the mining companies on the way forward. BSD Mining Services initially agreed to fully compensate Mr George Owusu Asante for taking over his farmlands for mining activities, but the company ultimately closed its operations and left the site without fulfilling this promise.
ACA’s legal team then reached out to Kibi Goldfields, which is ultimately responsible for compliance with all laws – including on compensation – within its concession. On Tuesday April 2, 2024, Kibi officially issued the cheque to ACA’s Legal Officer, Mustapha Mahamah, who in turn presented it to Mr. George Owusu Asante, the following day.
ACA is an Accra-based non-profit-making organization that supports West African communities threatened by extractive activities by multinational entities to take control of their own development and give them the tools to advocate for their own vision of the future.
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