Kofi Ahovi

  A Tender Committee has recommended the grant of the mining lease for the Damang Gold Mine to Engineers and Planners Limited, following a competitive evaluation process conducted by the Minerals Commission. The recommendation comes after a tender process initiated under Regulation 258 of the Minerals and Mining (Licensing Regulations), 2012 (LI 2176), aimed at selecting a strategic investor to take over the mining lease and operations of the Damang mine. According to the report, four companies responded to the public tender announced in the media. Out of these, two firms were shortlisted by the Mineral Titles Department of the Minerals Commission and subsequently submitted to the Tender Committee for detailed assessment. After what was described as a comprehensive evaluation, Engineers and Planners Limited emerged as the highest evaluated bidder, leading to the Committee’s recommendation for the award of the lease. Gold Fields Ghana Limited, which has operated in the country since...

  The Chief Executive Officer of Development Bank Ghana, Prof. Randolph Nsoh-Ambala, has explained that government’s $500 million oil palm financing facility is intended to catalyse private sector investment and transform Ghana’s oil palm industry. The facility, announced in the 2026 Budget by Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, will provide long-term financing for players in the oil palm value chain, including a five-year moratorium on both principal and interest payments. Speaking at a roundtable discussion on oil palm financing in Accra, Prof. Nsoh-Ambala explained that the initiative is designed to restructure the sector, improve productivity, and strengthen local processing capacity while reducing the country’s dependence on imported palm oil. There have been some confusions around what this represents,” he noted. “What government seeks to do with this fund is to transform the various fragmented production units within the value chain into a coherent ecosystem that will a...

  The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is pushing back against concerns over lost revenue following the abolition of the E-Levy, COVID-19 levy and betting tax, revealing stronger-than-expected collections in early 2026. The development challenges assumptions that removing the taxes would significantly weaken government revenue, even as pressure mounts to find new fiscal buffers. Speaking at a forum organised by the Centre for Policy Scrutiny, the Technical Advisor to the Commissioner-General of the GRA, Elsie Appau Klu, posited that while the tax removals were initially seen as a setback, the outcome has been more nuanced. She argued that “initially, like any person would think, yes, of course, abolishing these three taxes were considered as losses to government, and it puts some pressure on our staff.” But she pointed to a strong revenue rebound, stating that “this first quarter we have achieved 20% more than what we’ve collected last year… the GRA… has collected 33.7 billion Ghana c...

  Over the past decade, Kosmos Innovation Center (KIC) has emerged as one of Ghana’s most influential platforms for youth entrepreneurship in agriculture. What began as a bold idea—to inspire young people to see agriculture not as a last resort but as a thriving pathway for innovation and enterprise—has grown into a movement that is shaping the future of food systems across the country. Since its establishment in 2016, KIC has empowered thousands of young Ghanaians with the right skills, tools, and opportunities needed to build successful agribusinesses, creating more than 61,000 direct and indirect jobs, and contributing to sustainable food systems. Turning Ideas into Agribusiness Ventures At the heart of KIC’s work is its flagship youth entrepreneurship program, the AgriTech Challenge which equips university or college students and graduates with the entrepreneurial mindset and technical skills needed to develop innovative solutions in agriculture. Through training, mentorship, m...

  Stakeholders are calling for a deliberate national policy and stricter enforcement measures to boost domestic rice production and consumption as Ghana pushes toward rice self-sufficiency and improved food security. One proposal under consideration is the introduction of a dedicated day each week for the consumption of locally produced rice to encourage demand and support the growth of the domestic rice industry. The initiative would mirror existing national campaigns that promote local foods, such as the recently introduced Wednesday Fugu Day. Speaking at a breakfast meeting and policy dialogue in Accra to promote the ‘Eat Ghana Rice Campaign’, stakeholders emphasised that achieving self-sufficiency in rice will depend not only on increasing production but also on strengthening domestic consumption. The meeting, held under the theme “Promoting Ghana Rice Consumption for National Food Security and Economic Growth,” brought together policymakers, industry players and development pa...

  Ghana could significantly expand domestic processing of raw cashew nuts under a proposed partnership between the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) and PSL Machinery, a global manufacturer of cashew processing equipment and turnkey factory solutions. The proposal, currently under review by TCDA, seeks to establish multiple cashew processing plants in the country and scale up processing capacity as part of efforts to increase value addition in the sector. If implemented, the initiative aims to enable full domestic processing of Ghana’s cashew output within five years, targeting a processing capacity of about 500,000 metric tonnes annually—double the country’s estimated annual production of roughly 250,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts (RCNs). The move is expected to strengthen Ghana’s position in the global cashew value chain and enable the country to capture greater economic value from the crop, which remains one of its most important non-traditional exports. The Chief Executive...