Ken Ofori-Atta, Finance Minister, has tasked the Board of the Minerals Incomes and Investment Funds (MIIF) with addressing all issues made by different stakeholders regarding the Agyapa Royalty Deal before it returns to Parliament.
Mr. Ofori Atta, who believes the agreement is beneficial for the country, said that all required discussions would take place before it is presented to the House.
The Agyapa Royalty deal was presented by the government last year in order to generate money for critical infrastructure projects via mining royalties, but it was rejected by stakeholders.
While inaugurating the nine-member board of the Mineral Income Investment Fund in Accra on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, Mr. Ofori Atta said: “You must continue with the work that has been done following the theme of the budget ‘Continuity, Consolidation and Completion’ and address and overcome all the concerns against the Agyapa transaction, so we can go to the market and create the first mineral royalty company in Ghana and in Africa because it is good for Ghana.”
“The Attorney General has looked at it. We had a few stakeholder meetings, and I think the new board should be energized to review that and go through the parliamentary process. I’m unequivocal that it is the way to go in terms of monetizing our minerals and finding a way to leverage mining,” he added.
Concerning the Agyapa deal
The Minerals Income Investment Fund Act 2018 was enacted by Parliament in 2018, establishing the Fund to manage Ghana’s equity holdings in mining firms and collect royalties on the government’s behalf.
The Fund’s aim was to manage and invest these royalties and equities income for better returns for the benefit of the nation.
In exchange, the firm intended to raise between US$500 million and $1 billion for the government on the Ghana and London Stock Exchanges to invest in development projects.
However, the agreement became a source of contention when the opposition National Democratic Congress and other stakeholders spoke out against it.
The deal’s problems were compounded by a 64-page corruption risk analysis study issued against it by the then-Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu.
Following that, the administration halted the deal.
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