Ghana is the second-largest gold producer in Africa. While it also produces bauxite and manganese, the gold industry contributes more than 90 percent of total mineral revenues. The extractive sector accounted for 56 percent of exports in 2011, up from 12 percent in 2010 due to oil discoveries. However, its overall contribution to state revenues is relatively small, leading the government to reform the mining fiscal regime in 2011.

Oil production began in 2011. Oil revenues are projected to surpass mining receipts in the near future, but it is too soon to assess transparency in the oil industry. Ghana's RGI scores apply only to the mining sector.

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Ghana's Performance on the Resource Governance Index

Ghana received a "partial" score of 63, ranking 15th out of 58 countries. It scored particularly well on the Institutional & Legal Setting and Safeguards & Quality Controls components.

Rank (out of 58)		Score (out of 100)
15	Composite Score	63
12	Institutional & Legal Setting	79
Freedom of information law 33 Comprehensive sector legislation 67 EITI participation 100 Independent licensing process 100 Environmental and social impact assessments required 50 Clarity in revenue collection 83 Comprehensive public sector balance 100 SOC financial reports required N/A Fund rules defined in law N/A Subnational transfer rules defined in law 100
25	Reporting Practices	51
Licensing process 50 Contracts 33 Environmental and social impact assessments 0 Exploration data 50 Production volumes 67 Production value 67 Primary sources of revenue 67 Secondary sources of revenue 67 Subsidies 0 Operating company names 67 Comprehensive SOC reports N/A SOC production data N/A SOC revenue data N/A SOC quasi fiscal activities N/A SOC board of directors N/A Fund rules N/A Comprehensive fund reports N/A Subnational transfer rules 100 Comprehensive subnational transfer reports 100 Subnational reporting of transfers 0
13	Safeguards & Quality Controls	73
Checks on licensing process 78 Checks on budgetary process 78 Quality of government reports 67 Government disclosure of conflicts of interest 100 Quality of SOC reports N/A SOC reports audited N/A SOC use of international accounting standards N/A SOC disclosure of conflicts of interest N/A Quality of fund reports N/A Fund reports audited N/A Government follows fund rules N/A Checks on fund spending N/A Fund disclosure of conflicts of interest N/A Quality of subnational transfer reports 50 Government follows subnational transfer rules 67
13	Enabling Environment	59
Corruption (TI Corruption Perceptions Index & WGI control of corruption) 62 Open Budget (IBP Index) 64 Accountability & democracy (EIU Democracy Index & WGI voice and accountability) 59 Government effectiveness (WGI) 56 Rule of law (WGI) 54

Institutional & Legal Setting (Rank: 12th/58, Score: 79/100) learn more

Ghana earned a "satisfactory" score of 79, the product of substantial disclosure policies and an evolving legal framework.

In 2012 the Ministry of Minerals, Lands and Natural Reserves announced reforms to introduce competitive auctions for mineral licenses. Environmental impact assessments are required prior to licensing, but the results are confidential.

The Large Taxpayer Unit of the Ghana Revenue Authority collects all taxes from mining companies; taxes on dividends are collected by a separate unit of the Finance Ministry. The collecting agencies use some mining revenues in their own budgets rather than depositing them in the treasury.

Ghana is a signatory to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and achieved compliant status in 2010. A Freedom of Information Bill has been dormant in Parliament since 2010.

Reporting Practices (Rank: 25th/58, Score: 51/100) learn more

The government does not publish comprehensive information on most key aspects of the mining industry, resulting in a "partial" score of 51.

Information on applications for mining concessions is available for a fee, but there is no clear explanation of licensing criteria. Mining contracts are not published and it is difficult to evaluate the actual fiscal terms that apply to companies. However, many oil contracts are available on government websites. Some mining companies voluntarily publish their environmental impact assessments.

The Finance Ministry published information for 2011 on gold prices, the value of gold exports, investments in the mining sector, aggregated taxes from mining companies, dividends, license fees, and the sector's contribution to government revenues. The Ministry of Minerals, Lands and Natural Reserves publishes historical information on production volumes, prices, the value of mineral exports, estimates of investment in the mining sector, production stream values, and royalties. The central bank also provides relevant and timely data on exports, production volumes, and prices. The most comprehensive information on mining revenues is published in EITI reports, which include production volumes, mineral export values, the names of companies operating in the country, production data by company, production stream values, royalties, special taxes, dividends, license fees, and acreage fees.

Safeguards & Quality Controls (Rank: 13th/58, Score: 73/100) learn more

Ghana received a "satisfactory" score of 73, the product of substantive anti-corruption policies but a lack of assertive government oversight.

Inadequate resources mean that legislators rarely fulfill the requirement to ratify all mining contracts. Members of parliament from the ruling party are often appointed to the boards of mining companies, giving legislators a personal stake in the industry despite laws prohibiting conflicts of interest.

The Ghana Audit Office reviews government agencies' financial statements and reports to parliament, but audit mechanisms are weak and no reports specific to extractive revenues are published.

Enabling Environment (Rank: 13th/58, Score: 59/100) learn more

Ghana received a "partial" score of 59, reflecting less-than-satisfactory rankings on measurements of government accountability, transparency, and the rule of law.

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Subnational Transfers (Rank: 11th/30, Score: 69/100) learn more

Eighty percent of mining royalties are kept by the central government, 10 percent is deposited into a Mineral Development Fund for distribution to mining communities, and 10 percent goes to the Office of the Administrator of Stool Lands. The agencies then distribute legally-established shares to local authorities. Information on revenue transfers is published in EITI reports, but local authorities do not publish data on the funds they receive. The national audit office reviews the finances of Ghana's district assemblies, but revenues are not audited at the local level, creating the potential for mismanagement.

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Composite Score