By Libby George
LONDON, Oct 21 (Reuters) – Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama said on Wednesday he was not concerned about Russian security assistance in the Sahel and that anyone committed to fighting terrorism is welcome in the region.
• “My opinion on this is that anybody who is committed to the fight against terrorism is welcome,” Mahama said at the Financial Times Africa Summit in London
• On the deployment of a West African standby force to tackle insecurity, Mahama said the delay in deploying it was due to the lack of a UN resolution to help provide the finance needed
• Mahama also said that Ghana is aiming to ban exports of raw materials by 2030 in order to increase value added from critical minerals, specifically citing lithium, manganese, bauxite and gold
• He said 70% of Ghana’s gold is currently being refined in Ghana before export, and said he was “sure that soon we refine 100% of gold”
• On cocoa, Mahama said he aiming to process at least 50% of cocoa beans locally, with only 50% of any year’s production available for exports
• “That should bring some of the processing home and create jobs for people,” he said
(Reporting by Libby George, additional reporting by David Lewis; Editing by Karin Strohecker and Xevi Fontdegloria)
