The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel A. Jinapor, has tasked the Minerals Development Fund (MDF) Secretariat to undertake a number of development projects in mining communities across the country.

The minister made this disclosure during his engagement with the management and staff of the Fund on Monday, 30 January 2023, where he was briefed on the 2023 action plans of the fund.

In an interaction with the media after the meeting, Mr Jinapor spoke of the achievements of the MDF so far under the Akufo-Addo administration.

He touted the action plan of the MDF for 2023 as a lofty and ambitious one that can only be achieved through concerted and collaborative efforts between the agency and the ministry.

He explained that the plan contains projects in the areas of health, education, alternative livelihood empowerment and general infrastructure.

Mr Jinapor stressed that MDF is key to the government’s plan to create a sustainable and environmentally friendly mining sector.

The minister said MDF’s core responsibility of promoting the welfare of mining communities in the country is important.

He observed that MDF was created to ensure that the development gap between mining communities is bridged to allow a serene and incident-free environment for the mining industry to thrive.

“The action plan is such that they are going to roll out a lot more projects in the mining communities. It is absolutely important that we carry indigenous mining communities with us because, without them, we will not have the needed stability to construct the mining industry we so wish”, he said.

“The ministry is grateful for the work done so far and we want to commend the management and staff of the fund for doing excellent work. The mandate and work of the MDF are so important and consequential to our efforts at constructing a responsible mining industry in the country which has regard for the environment”, he added.

Dr Norris Hammah, the Administrator for the MDF, said his outfit is grateful to the ministry for the support it has been receiving and was willing to team up with the ministry to achieve its set objectives for the 2023 calendar year and beyond.

He stated that the MDF is mandated by law to provide financial assistance in various ways to mining communities and will ensure that the fund executes its mandate to the satisfaction of the residents in all mining communities.