Bright Simons has described Ghana’s lithium negotiations as a case of strong political accountability but weak policy accountability, accusing the government of sidelining data-driven engagement.
He said IMANI-Africa repeatedly offered to work with policymakers to develop a national fiscal model to guide lithium negotiations, but those efforts were rejected.
“Despite all efforts by IMANI to engage policymakers to build a fiscal model together, the Minister flatly refuses to engage in good faith,” he stated.
Simons also criticised the 7% baseline royalty rate presented to Parliament, arguing that analysts had advised a minimum of 10%. “At that rate, the investor will still make a lot of profit,” he noted.
According to him, the situation worsened when Parliament was presented with a lease provision suggesting Atlantic Lithium would conduct a future scoping study on refining, despite an earlier study already concluding that refining was unviable.
“This whole lithium situation is becoming a classic case study of katanomics,” Simons wrote, defining it as “high political accountability but low policy accountability.”
He insists that public clarification is now necessary. “We need the Minister to respond directly and publicly to these matters,” he said.
