Collapse of mining economy in 1980s contributed to Africa’s economic decline – Yao Graham

Dr. Yao Graham, Coordinator of the Third World Network-Africa (TWN-Africa), has raised concerns about the economic challenges facing African nations, attributing part of the downturn to the collapse of the mining economy in the 1980s.

Speaking at the TWN-Africa@30 event on the theme “Organising for Equitable and Transformative Policies” on Tuesday, November 26, Dr. Graham reflected on Ghana’s pivotal role in reshaping mining policies during that era.

He acknowledged Ghana’s early leadership in reforming mining laws, particularly through liberalisation efforts that were viewed as a model across the continent.

However, he expressed disappointment that these reforms did not yield the anticipated socio-economic benefits.

Dr. Graham highlighted that while Ghana became a legal trailblazer in the mining sector, the outcomes fell short of expectations.

Instead of fostering broad-based economic development, the country faced challenges such as rapid privatisation and the unregulated granting of mining concessions to foreign entities, which undermined long-term gains.

“The collapse of the mineral economy from the 1980s was a key factor in Africa’s economic decline and in Ghana, in 1980, the Hilla Limann’s government took a decision to try to revive the gold industry and when the PNDC came to power and became a champion of structural policies, Ghana was a pioneer in the liberalisation of the mining sector in Africa with the passage in 1986, of a law which opened up the space for foreign investors and proceeded to legalise artisanal and small-scale mining.”

Dr. Graham further critiqued the celebratory narrative surrounding the inflow of foreign direct investments and the promise of export-generated revenue. He noted that such propaganda often overshadowed the complex realities of the mining sector’s impact on the local economy and communities.

“Since the first wave of privatisation and granting of new concessions to new transnational corporations, official propaganda has focused on celebrating the amount of foreign direct investments coming into the country and the prospect of earning foreign exchange from exports. Today, Ghanaians have a more sophisticated cost-benefit analysis of the role and contribution of mining.”