The President of Women in Mining Ghana, Dr Georgette Barnes Sakyi-Addo has officially outdoored the BCM Women in Mining Chapter in Accra with a call on women to ensure excellence in their profession irrespective of challenges.
She commended management of BCM for creating an enabling and cordial environment for the establishment of a Women in Mining Chapter.
The Ghana Chamber of Mines annual industry demographic study in 2023 revealed that women represent approximately 10 per cent of the total workforce in the large-scale mining sector.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the BCM Women in Mining Chapter in Accra on Friday, Dr Sakyi-Addo said the formation of the chapters played a crucial role in driving organisational growth.
‘The Women in Mining Chapters plays a crucial role in driving growth in organisations, having a vibrant chapter helps deal with a lot of issues, sometimes the chapters act as a source of research, because when we are organized like that, it is easy to find out what is happening and
find solutions.
‘I wish that we will get to a point where there will be enough women, where the mining sector will be inclusive and we do not need to have Women in Mining groups.
‘But for now we are working on more participation of women in the sector, those who come on board, what is it that doesn’t make them not stay and find solutions to them, for me this also an economic empowerment issue. The natural resources belong to Ghana and if your daughter can get a job there, you know she is going to get good pay and training and some form of security,’ she said.
On her part the Deputy Australian High Commissioner to Ghana, Penny Dennis commended BCM for making the formation of the Chapter a reality.
‘It is absolutely delightful to be at the launch of the BCM’s Women in Mining Chapter today, we have been a strong advocate of the Women in Mining Ghana network.
‘It is a really important network; we have had the privilege of hosting for a couple of years now a breakfast on International Women’s Day but more imp
ortantly being able to support their mentoring programme
President of the newly inaugurated BCM Women in Mining Chapter Ama Duose-Bansah said the formation was a demonstration of BCM’s commitment to women empowerment.
‘It is actually a good initiative, one that we are all happy about, because it shows that the company is going to support women empowerment.
‘Our vision is to encourage more women to be bold and come forward to join the extractive sector not just mining but Oil and gas and once it is a field dominated by men,’ Duose- Bansah said.
The event was attended by dignitaries including representatives from Ghana Chamber of Mines, Minerals Commission, Women in Mining Ghana and the Ghana Mine Workers Union.
BCM, a global civil earthworks and surface mining contractor based in Ghana, West Africa, has been operating for nearly 100 years, originally as ‘Harold List and Sons’ in the 1950s, and then as Bayswater Contracting.
It has a strong presence in the region and has established a reputation as an ind
ustry leader in earthworks and surface mining contracting.
The company has extensive international experience in bulk and detailed earthworks for construction and mining projects and has combined civil earthworks skills with open pit mining skills since 1994; often undertaking large-scale construction earthworks projects using medium-sized mining plant and equipment and has expanded throughout West Africa, Tanzania, Central Asia, and Jordan.
Source: Ghana News Agency