The West African office of GGA embarked on advocacy and sensitisation sessions under the thematic area of Natural Resource Conservation, Protection and Utilisation. These sessions saw the use of the outcome of one of the regional office’s research works titled Community Involvement Plan for Natural Resource Development, led by Dr Aiman Sadik.

The focus of engagement was on the subject of Social Licence to Operate (SLO), a critical component in the natural resource exploration pathway that seeks to ensure harmony between proponents (mining companies) and their host communities (mine-take communities). The timing of these stakeholder engagements in the Western Region of Ghana couldn’t have come at any better period given the tense atmosphere surrounding years of government’s clamp down on illegal mining across Ghana.

This newsletter provides a summary of the proceedings during the engagement sessions, as well as an outline of issues and measures that should be considered for further discussion.