Ghana’s mining industry has called on the government to reconsider the overall tax burden on gold producers despite a recent reduction in the Growth and Sustainability Levy.
Ken Ashiegbey, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, said the government should review the effective royalty rate on mining companies to ensure the country remains competitive for investment.
His comments come after Ghana’s parliament passed the Growth and Sustainability Levy (Amendment) Bill, 2026, on Friday, cutting the levy on gold mining companies from 3% of gross production to 1%.
The government says the measure is intended to cushion mining firms following the introduction of the Minerals and Mining Royalty Regulations, 2025, which created a sliding-scale system allowing royalty rates to rise or fall depending on global commodity prices.
Speaking in an interview on News Digest on Saturday, Ken Ashiegbey welcomed the government’s decision but said further adjustments may be necessary.
“We should first say thank you to the government. The minister for finance, when we met with him and the Ministry for Lands and Natural Resources, had made a commitment that he was going to take off two percent of the growth and sustainability levy, and we had told him that we’re grateful for that, but it was not going to be enough,” he said.
According to him, the combined royalty burden on gold producers remains high and could affect Ghana’s attractiveness as a mining destination.
“The 13.54% royalty in Ghana, which effectively means that’s where the one percent GSL to the twelve percent at today’s gold price conversion, will not make us competitive,” he said.
He called for continued engagement between the government and industry players to identify what he described as a balanced tax framework.
“Our appeal and the continuous engagement we have with the government is for the government to consider that there’s some work that we need to all do together to find a sweet spot that would ensure that Ghana would continue to be an attractive mining jurisdiction,” he added.
Ashiegbey also warned that declining investor confidence could have wider economic consequences.
“If you look at the Fraser Report that has just been issued, you find that in terms of investment attractiveness, we’ve dropped. And it would have implications for investment,” he said.
According to him, reduced investment in the sector could eventually lead to lower production, job losses, and declining government revenue.
