Steve Ofori, the Project Manager of Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited, has stated the company’s commitment to responsible mining practices in its operations.
“Some of the things we do is environmental quality, making sure that, the groundwater and surface water is good, because, we have communities that we are working within and those communities use the streams, and, so, we make sure that we don’t contaminate the ground and surface water. We also look at the air quality. Making sure that pollution is minimal for the people around us and the workers”, he stated.
He said this during the Regional Security Council’s (REGSEC) monitoring visit to the management of the company at its operation site in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region. The visit was part of the REGSEC mandate to acquaint itself with the level of development being undertaken by the company. Briefing the team, the Project Manager said the company holds a 15-year mining license and envisions processing 150 million tonnes of ore, yielding approximately 5.1 million ounces of gold over the mine’s lifespan.
He emphasized that Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited views responsible mining as a fundamental aspect of its corporate ethos and is committed to upholding the highest standards in all aspects of its operations.
“The company’s process plant is designed to produce 9.5 million tons of gold ore annually, with plans to commence gold pouring in the forth quarter of 2024”, Mr. Ofori added.
In terms of legal compliance, he said the company is fully committed to adhering to all permits and regulations governing mining activities.
Emmanuel Kofi Adusei, the Community and Social Responsibility Manager, said out of the 1, 238 employees of the company currently, 633 are from the Upper East Region, 472 are from other parts of Ghana and 133 are expatriates.
He said the company takes pride in social responsibility and has spent a total investment of 3.5 million cedis in the areas of health, education, water and sanitation, donations, skills development, institutional capacity building, and public infrastructural maintenance.
“We spent 10 million dollars on the resettlement project, where the company put together 123 residential houses and 23 public structures such as churches, mosques, schools, medical facilities, etc., both at the Accra and Biung sites in 2022,” he added.
Stephen Yakubu, the Upper East Regional Minister and Chairman of REGSEC, entreated the management of Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited to endeavor to engage the community members in a positive relationship.
“You can engage the chiefs, but the real owners of the land need to be engaged so that they will understand that they are partners,” he stated.
He commended the company for its job creation which he said is in line with the government’s quest to reduce unemployment. Mr. Yakubu admonished it to prioritize the safety of its workers, and the community while ensuring they protect the environment. Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited, a subsidiary of Shandong Gold, is one of the top 10 gold-producing companies in the world and Ghana is the first African country to start a business.
Source: A1Radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Joshua Asaah|Talensi|Ghana
