News
Gold refining in Ghana more expensive than abroad – Kenneth Ashigbey
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines and Convenor of the Media Coalition Against Illegal Mining, Kenneth Ashigbey, has disclosed that it currently costs more to refine gold in Ghana than abroad.
He explained that the high cost of refining locally is driven by several factors, including the cost of power, taxes on chemicals imported into the country and the expense involved in treating industrial waste.
According to him on Joy news on Wednesday August 27, 2026 these challenges make it difficult for Ghanaian refineries to compete with refineries in other countries.
Mr Ashigbey noted that the issue of economies of scale also affects the cost of refining, stressing that countries with larger refining operations can spread their costs over higher volumes of gold.
He, however, indicated that discussions are already underway between the GoldBod and the Ministry of Finance on measures to make Ghana’s refineries more competitive.
He believes Ghana should position itself as a regional hub for gold refining rather than focus only on gold produced within the country.
“The whole issue of beneficiation and value addition, we cannot look at it as a country-specific thing. It has to be a regional thing,” he noted.
Mr Ashigbey explained that Ghana could attract gold from other countries within the sub-region if its refineries become more efficient and cost-effective.
He therefore called for improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of local refineries, as well as government incentives to reduce the cost of refining and encourage more companies to refine their gold in Ghana.
He stressed that making local refining competitive would be important to Ghana’s efforts to retain more value from its gold resources.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Management and staff of Owass FM have announced the passing of media personality, comedian and politician Seth Kwame Dzokoto following a medical emergency during a live morning show discussion at the station earlier today.
According to the station, Dzokoto was participating in a panel discussion on its morning show “Oman Nkoso” when he suddenly took ill and collapsed.
A statement from the station said its team immediately rushed him to the hospital for medical attention, but he was pronounced dead by the attending medical doctor upon arrival.
“We are deeply saddened by this unfortunate incident, which occurred in the course of our regular programming. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, loved ones, colleagues, and all those who have been affected by his passing,” the statement said.
Management acknowledged that information about the incident is already circulating in the public domain, but appealed to the public and colleague media houses to respect the privacy of the bereaved family and refrain from circulating unverified information or speculation regarding the circumstances of his death.
Owass FM extended its heartfelt condolences to the family of Seth Kwame Dzokoto.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The State through the Attorney General (AG) has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court challenging the suspension of the trial in the case of The Republic v Hanan Aludiba and Faiza Seidu.
On Monday, the Court of Appeal suspended the trial in the case. But the prosecution says it has filed an appeal against the suspension order.
According to the update, the law does not allow a criminal trial to be suspended simply because an accused person has complained about some of the charges on the charge sheet, particularly when those complaints were dismissed as meritless.
It argues that if the Court of Appeal’s decision is allowed to stand, no prosecution will ever be possible, since all it would take for a trial to be suspended is an accused person complaining about anything on the charge sheet.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
