The small-scale mining licence acquisition process, guided
by the Minerals and Mining Act and the Minerals and Mining (Licencing)
Regulations, is transparent, neutral and based on merit, the Minerals
Commission has said.
The Commission, in a statement
issued in Accra, explained that the licencing procedure is neutral and based on
merit. It starts with an applicant
identifying an area of interest and contacting the District Officer of the
Commission responsible for the area to initiate the application process, in line
with the Commission’s policy of decentralising the application process.
It said at the District Office
of the Commission, the area is checked to find out whether it is free or
encumbered and an official search report is then issued to the applicant in
that respect.
“If the search report shows
the area is unencumbered, the applicant can go ahead to complete an application
form and prepare a site plan for submission to the District Office of the
Minerals Commission,” it said.
On receipt of the application,
the Commission will process the application -- including inspecting the site to
verify the accuracy of the site plan and forward the application to the
relevant District Assembly for a 21-day publication.
The District Assembly is
required to return the results of the publication to the Minerals Commission,
signed by the District Chief Executive.
It said if there is no
objection to the application and the applicant’s proposals for carrying out the
mining operations are determined to be satisfactory, the Commission makes a
recommendation to the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources to grant a small-scale
mining licence.
These applications are dealt
with on a first-come first-considered basis, which means that no application
will be considered until the first in line goes through the process and is
rejected.
“In line with the Commission’s continuous
efforts to further deepen transparency in the licence acquisition process, a
Minerals Cadastre Administration System -- a computer-based online cadaster -- is
being introduced, which will show the entire licencing procedure online;
including details of applicants and the areas granted.”
The Commission denied
knowledge of any ‘unofficial leasing of mining concessions to miners’. It said
while the law permits the transfer of mineral rights to Ghanaians subject to
approval of the minister, any information relating to specific illegal transfer
of mineral licences should be brought to the of the Commission’s attention for
redress.
Also, periodically the minister
creates designated or blocked-out areas for small-scale mining under Section 89
of Act 703.
“Typically, these areas are
created from areas surrendered by some mining or exploration companies.”
The areas found to be suitable
for small-scale mining are mapped and demarcated in accordance with the number
of blocks prescribed for small-scale mining licences, and made available to
interested Ghanaians in the relevant districts.
If an applicant follows the
procedure and meets requirements for operating a mine, the Commission makes a
recommendation for the minister to grant the licence.
It would also be inaccurate to
suggest that non-miners are ineligible to apply for small-scale mining licence,
or any mineral rights for that matter.
The statement said under
section 83 of Act 703, the key qualifications for a small-scale mining licence
are Ghanaian citizenship and age (minimum of 18 years).
“Therefore, an owner of a mine
is not required to be miner; so long as s/he can show that competent persons
will be employed to work on the concession.”
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