Ghana Must Ground Critical Minerals Strategy in National Interest, Not Imitation — NRGI

As Ghana eyes a future in the global critical minerals market, Denis Gyeyir, Programme Officer at the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), says the country can draw important lessons from other resource-rich nations, but must tailor its strategy to its own realities and long-term goals.

Speaking at a webinar during London Climate Action Week 2025, themed “Beyond Raw Exports: Leveraging Energy Transition Mineral Value Addition in Producer Countries,” Gyeyir noted how countries like Indonesia offer useful insights, but stressed that Ghana’s mineral policy must reflect its unique position and national interest.

Not All Minerals or Countries Are the Same

Gyeyir emphasized that value addition strategies cannot be copied wholesale from one country to another. “Every mineral is unique in its own way,” he explained. “The potential Indonesia has in nickel is not the same as Ghana’s potential in lithium.” In his view, any attempt at local mineral processing must be grounded in the availability of reliable feedstock, which is still uncertain in Ghana’s lithium sector.

Valuable Lessons, but Caution Required

While some countries have successfully leveraged domestic resource policies to attract investment in mineral processing, Gyeyir warned that Ghana should avoid adopting strategies like export bans without a solid foundation.

“Export bans may not necessarily be the way to go for Ghana, especially for minerals like lithium where we don’t really have the reserve potential already,” he said.

Instead, Ghana should learn from how other countries, like Indonesia in the case of nickel have improved investor attractiveness and built local technical capacity. These positive lessons, Gyeyir believes, are more aligned with Ghana’s current stage of development and offer a realistic path forward.

Reconsidering Bauxite and Domestic Potential

Beyond lithium, Gyeyir encouraged policymakers to also consider minerals where Ghana already has proven reserves. “Ghana has experimented and learned some lessons over the years with bauxite. It would be important to look there as well,” he suggested, pointing to opportunities to revisit earlier value addition initiatives that could now be strengthened with better planning and governance.

Partnerships Must Be Guided by National Interest

Gyeyir cautioned that while international partnerships are essential in scaling value addition for energy transition minerals, they must be guided by a well-defined national strategy. “These are not mutually exclusive,” he said. “Countries must go into partnership negotiations with a clear view of their strategic position and national interest.”

He stressed the importance of conducting feasibility and market studies to determine what is viable. “Building internal capacity to add value increases your leverage in partnerships,” Gyeyir noted. “But you need to know what’s feasible and what’s not.”

Building for the Long Term

Gyeyir’s submission underscored a central point: while global demand for transition minerals creates unprecedented opportunity, Ghana must approach value addition with realism and rigour.

“In the race to add value to transition minerals, having the resource is only part of the equation. Understanding your market, your capacity, and your strategic leverage is what will determine success,” he concluded.

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