Members of the organizing committee of the first edition of the Mining and Oil Forum/Exhibition of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOMOF 2015) will convene in Accra, Ghana, from 6 to 10 July, to take stock of preparations leading up to this event.

The meeting will afford them the opportunity to consider the report of their previous meeting and analyse the schedule of activities already carried out, alongside the remaining tasks yet to be completed. Committee members will also develop a communication and marketing plan to raise awareness at national, regional and international level.

ECOMOF 2015, whose official launching ceremony took place on Friday 26 September 2014 in the Ghanaian capital, will hold at the same venue from 6 to 8 October 2015.

The theme of the first ECOWAS Mining and Oil Forum will be «Harnessing West Africa’s mining and oil resources through regional cooperation». It will be attended by Ministers of the mining sector and public and private decision-makers operating in the West African mining and oil industry.

ECOMOF 2015 will involve interactive workshops, training sessions, plenary sessions, trade shows, country presentations, visits to industries including round tables aimed at highlighting and promoting the development of mining and oil resources in West Africa.

The ECOWAS Mining and Oil Forum (ECOMOF) was institutionalized by the Authority of Heads of State and Government on the proposal of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, and on the recommendation of ECOWAS Member States’ Ministers of Mining Resources.

It aims, among others, to enhance the Community’s mining and oil potentials, promote regional socio-economic integration, develop artisanal and small-scale mining and create geological, mining and oil databases in ECOWAS Member States.

Ghana was chosen to host the first edition of the Forum owing to its huge contribution to the harmonization of ECOWAS mining policies and programmes, as well as its long-standing experience in mining.

In 2013, Ghana was the ninth largest producer of gold and diamond in the world. As such, it has a good data coverage obtained from aerial surveys. It also has large reserves of bauxite ore and iron, besides rock salt, chlorine and caustic soda as well as industrial minerals. What is more, the country recently acquired the largest gold refinery in West Africa.

Regarding the mining sector, Ghana has an attractive legal and fiscal regime, consistent with international best practices, as well as a stable regulatory environment that ensures transparent and fair treatment of the sector’s investors and operators.

The various legal and regulatory regimes introduced into the sector, for instance, Ghana’s Petroleum Revenue Management Act, draw on best practices from other oil-producing countries, with emphasis on oil revenue collection and distribution mechanisms.