Social responsibility agreement and practice in the gold mining industry in Ghana: evidence from Newmont Ghana Goldcorp limited

Abstract

Signing social responsibility agreements (SRAs) has gained prominence among mining companies recently, however, the nature, practice and implications of these agreements is less understood. The study examined the social responsibility agreement and practice in gold mining industry in Ghana based on evidence from Newmont Ghana Goldcorp Limited. The study employed concurrent non-dependent mixed method research approach, multistage and purposive sampling techniques to collect data from the respondents using questionnaires, structured interview schedules, interview guides and focus group discussions guide. Descriptive and inferential statistics, as well as thematic and content analysis were used to analyze the data. The exploratory case study found that the development and practice of mining SRA is a complex process that requires a skilled moderator. It involves an interconnected process of pre-negotiation, deliberation and consultation, formalization, implementation, and review and evaluation with stakeholders, to produce three agreements - relationship, foundation and local employment agreements. The SRA process is driven by motivation of a mining company to help society, to obtain social license to work, and pressure coming from local communities, CSOs and NGOs. The implementation of mining SRA led to improvement in educational and healthcare infrastructure in the mining communities. The key implementation challenges included poor use of compensation funds, conflict of interest situations in the award of development projects and mistrust among stakeholders. The study recommended that development of mining SRAs should be backed by extensive research, expert knowledge, stakeholder collaboration, conflict management and consensus building, continually.