Dr. Hanna Bisiw-Kotei Delivers Keynote Address at 2025 Minerals and Mining Convention

The Administrator of the Minerals Development Fund (MDF), Dr. Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei, delivered a compelling keynote address at the 2025 Minerals and Mining Convention, held at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City, Accra.

The convention, which brought together key stakeholders from the mining industry, government agencies, academia and development partners, focused on the theme “Shaping the Future of Ghana’s Gold Industry.”

Dr. Bisiw-Kotei’s address centered on the theme “Leveraging Mining Revenues for Sustainable Development.” She said, mining has always played a pivotal role in our economy. It has fueled industrialization, created jobs, attracted foreign direct investment and contributed significantly to government revenue. Yet, mining has also left scars on our environment, our communities and sometimes even on our collective social fabric.

She further emphasized that “true development is not measured merely by GDP growth, but by the well-being of the people, the resilience of communities and the preservation of natural resources for future generations. Mining, by its very nature, is a finite activity. Once a mineral resource is depleted, it cannot be replenished. This is why the revenues we generate from mining must be channeled into investments that outlive the mines themselves.”

She commended His Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, President of the Republic of Ghana for his vision in establishing the Minerals Development Fund (MDF) and reiterated the Funds mandate, “to ensure that revenues from mineral resources are invested in the development of mining-affected communities, in a way that fosters trust, equity and sustainability. We are committed to being a bridge between resource wealth and human development, ensuring that communities do not just bear the cost of mining but also enjoy its benefits”.

She concluded with an African proverb: “We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” The mining revenues we manage today are not just for us; they are a Trust for generations yet unborn.

Let us therefore, work together, government, industry, communities and civil society, to ensure that the wealth beneath our soil is deliberately harnessed into capital for creating wealth to establish schools, hospitals and other developmental projects for the benefit of the people, especially those living in mining communities.