Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the discussions on mining.
The five thematic areas under CSD 18 are interrelated in terms of impacts (both positive and
negative) to humanity. However, the sustainable development challenge that we have is how to
minimize the negative impacts so the net impact will not only be positive, but maximized.
Focusing on mining, Mining and sustainable development is a key theme of this Session and is a
subject of keen interest to countries endowed with mineral resources. Even for those without such
resources, the possible environmental impacts which may have climate change implications, among
others, should make the subject matter of interest to them.
Mining provides both socio-economic and environmental opportunities in a most developing
countries. These opportunities will have to be harnessed in such a way that the activity will
contribute to sustainable development.
Efforts being made to enhance the socio-economic benefits include:
? Review of fiscal regimes in a number of developing countries with mineral resources;
? Streamlining/enhancing monitoring and evaluation of fiscal and financial flows within the
sector to ensure efficient mobilization and distribution of the benefits of mining;
? Developing legislation and guidelines for disbursement and usage of the part of mineral
revenues returned to mining communities; and
? Increasing Government-Industry Partnership to improve linkages with the rest of the
economy.
On the environmental front efforts being made include:
o Enhancing Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedures for mining activities
to ensure that it includes best practices such as mine closure planning and posting of
reclamation bonds.
Additionally, Government and the Private Sector have, either individually or jointly, signed on to
international voluntary initiatives such as the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme (KPCS),
Extractive Industries, Transparency Initiative (EITI), International Council on Mining and Metals
(ICMM) and the International Cyanide Management Code (ICMC), to facilitate a collaborative
approach to institution and maintenance of requisite governance, social and environmental standards.
We would also like to highlight the initiative of the African Union, through its Council of Ministers
Responsible for Mineral Resource Development, to see to the adoption and implementation of the
Africa Mining Vision at all levels.
Ghana believes this is the way to go if we plan to catalyse the sustainable development of the
African continent through mining.
Mr. Chairman, two (2) years from now (2012), the Commission on Sustainable Development will be
conducting twenty (20) years assessment of the implementation of Agenda 21 and it is our
expectation that good progress would have been made on all these fronts.
I would therefore like to reiterate the need for an integrated approach to ensuring that developing
nations with mineral resources, both individually and collectively, succeed in their efforts to use
mining as a catalyst for sustainable development. Consequently, I would like to implore the
assistance of our Development Partners in actualizing this vision.
Mr. Chairman, in conclusion, yesterday Ghana was privileged to participate in a very educative side
meeting ? the Learning Centre on the contribution of mining to sustainable development under the
auspices of the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable
Development. This meeting discussed the lessons learnt and how these can help improve the net
positive impact of mining. Noting that a lot of the debate on mining has been based on
misinformation and inadequate knowledge relating to the sector, a unanimous key conclusion
relevant for this discussion was that:
Mining has the potential to make a ?
Mining is indeed currently making some ?
But mining can still make a greater ?
? contribution to Sustainable Development
Especially from a developing country perspective therefore, what is needed is for all stakeholders
including Development Partners to work together to build the governance capacity needed to manage
the sector especially at the local level, but also at regional, national and also collaboratively at
supranational levels.
Copies of the report on the meeting, which will be posted on both the CSD 18 website and that of the
Intergovernmental Forum, have been placed at the back of this hall and we encourage distinguished
representatives to avail themselves of it and act on it.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to make this intervention.
