CDS Africa Criticizes Both the State and Northern Ashanti Mines, Calling for the Dispute to Be Resolved on the Basis of Law, Facts, and Candor

CDS Africa Criticizes Both the State and Northern Ashanti Mines, Calling for the Dispute to Be Resolved on the Basis of Law, Facts, and Candor

Accra, 2 November 2026. The Africa Center for Democracy and Socioeconomic Development (CDS Africa) has followed with concern the dispute over the termination of Northern Ashanti Mines’ lease at Konongo in the Ashanti Region, now before the High Court in Accra. Both parties have acted in ways that fall short of public expectations, and neither should treat the courtroom as one forum among several.

As reported, the Minerals Commission says the company holds a lease of 595 cadastral blocks acquired in January 2010; owes about US$8.33 million in annual mineral right fees for 2010 to 2025 and US$49,928 on prospecting licences; was served notices on 14 April 2025 under Section 68(2) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703); failed to carry out meaningful mining for over two years, contrary to Section 69(1); and had its lease terminated after the Minister’s approval on 24 April 2026 (Adom Online, 27 October 2026). The company says it never received a notice of breach or an opportunity to show cause, and that on 22 October 2026, Lands Commission officials, accompanied by military personnel, ordered its staff off the site. It values its investment at over US$110 million and has sought judicial review and an injunction (Ghanaian Times, 27 October 2026; Graphic Online, 26 October 2026).

Where the State Falls Short

Act 703 gives the State graduated tools: notice, an opportunity to remedy, and only then termination. Unpaid fees are a debt the Commission can pursue; termination is its gravest sanction and belongs at the end of a documented process. The company’s claim that it had no notice or chance to show cause goes to the heart of that process and to the fairness duties in Articles 23 and 296 of the Constitution.

If the company’s account of the 22 October removal is true, deploying soldiers a day after judicial review was filed would be an abuse of coercive power. The security agencies the company asked the Court to restrain include NAIMOS, a body created to confront unlicensed mining. A license holder in a dispute with the regulator is not a galamseyer, and machinery built for one must not be turned on the other.

The Commission’s own record also invites scrutiny. It alleges arrears from 2010, yet the notices it cites date only from 2025. A regulator that guards the nation’s minerals under Article 257 cannot let a debt of this size build for fifteen years and then present sudden enforcement as diligence.

Where the Company Falls Short

Northern Ashanti Mines is no mere victim of circumstance. If the Commission’s figures are correct, a lessee held 595 cadastral blocks for sixteen years, left annual fees unpaid, and did not mine meaningfully. Warehousing a concession as a financial asset while host communities wait for jobs and royalties breaches the spirit of the law, whatever its letter. The “use it or lose it” principle exists precisely for this reason.

The company also owes the public candor. If it was served in April 2025, it should explain how it responded; if not, it should provide proof. Pressing its case in the media is no substitute for addressing the specific allegations, including the debt. A claim of US$110 million in investment should be supported by audited accounts, work programs, and evidence of environmental compliance, not publicity.

What Ghanaians Expect

We urge the Commission to publish the April 14, 2025 notice; proof of service; any response from the company; and the Minister’s approval. We urge the Ministers for Lands and Natural Resources and for Defense to state whether any security agency was at the site and on what legal authority. We urge the company to publish its fee history, work programs, and audited accounts.

Both parties should honor every order of the High Court, and the Attorney General should ensure that no new right is granted over the concession while the judicial review is pending. The mine and its reclamation obligations must not be left unattended in the meantime. Employees and host households must be protected.

A Charge to the Nation

Ghana wants a mining sector that is lawful, accountable, and open to serious investors. That requires regulators who enforce rules evenly and with restraint, and license holders who treat concessions as obligations to the people. In keeping with Ghana’s Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative commitments, the Commission should publish the status of every mineral right in its cadastre so that disputes like this are caught early. Let the Court decide on the evidence, and let every public officer and concession holder remember that the minerals beneath our soil belong to the people of Ghana.

CDS Africa will monitor the proceedings and comment on the ruling.