Ibrahim Mahama's Damang mine employs 400 locals in four months as airstrip and roads take shape

Four months after Ibrahim Mahama's Engineers and Planners took over the Damang Gold Mine from South Africa's Gold Fields, the communities that host the mine are watching promises turn into site work, and cautiously liking what they see.

Chiefs and residents of Damang held a press conference this week to assess early progress under Damang Gold Mine Limited, the vehicle through which Mahama's company now operates the concession.

Their verdict was measured but encouraging: nearly 400 local people have entered various stages of recruitment since the April 18 handover, early earthworks have begun on a proposed airstrip, road construction is underway and plans for community sports facilities are advancing.

"The early implementation of commitments by DGML has given the communities grounds for cautious optimism," said Nana Kwabena Amponsah IV, chief of the Bosomtwi Divisional Council, who addressed journalists at the press conference.

The employment numbers are the most concrete measure of progress so far. Of the nearly 400 people engaged, 180 are already working. Another 135 have been selected for positions and are at various stages of pre-employment medicals and induction. A further 85 have completed interviews and are awaiting results.

Roles being filled include maintenance, heavy-duty drivers, security personnel and general hands, with chiefs noting that Ghanaian professionals have also been appointed to key operational positions.

Community leaders stressed that employment alone is not enough. They called on DGML to pair recruitment with sustained skills development and career progression, and to deepen the involvement of local businesses and contractors in the mine's supply chain as production scales up.

On infrastructure, the most significant commitment is the proposed airstrip at the Huni waste dump site. At the April handover ceremony, Mahama had pledged to construct an airport within six months. DGML has completed the design, initial earthworks have commenced and both the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority and the Prestea-Huni Valley Municipal Assembly have visited the site to inspect progress.

Road construction has also begun on the Damang-to-Subri section of a corridor linking Damang, Subri, Praso and Cape Coast. Work so far has involved clearing road fringes, cutting and filling sections and constructing culverts in waterlogging-prone areas. Communities described the corridor as strategically important for connecting mining towns to broader commercial centers.

Plans for astroturf sports parks at Subri, Damang and Huni Valley are at the preparatory stage. Land has been made available and a consultant has visited the proposed sites, with mobilization expected by mid-August.

The Damang handover was one of the most politically charged mining transactions in Ghana's recent history. Mahama is the younger brother of President John Dramani Mahama, and the award drew scrutiny from opposition lawmakers and prompted a petition to Ghana's Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice.

A civil society coalition has since backed the transaction, arguing that E&P's application predated the current presidency and that the firm won a competitive tender on merit, backed by a $205 million syndicated loan arranged by Stanbic Bank Ghana and Standard Bank of South Africa.

Nana Amponsah framed the larger stakes plainly. "A sustainable mining operation cannot exist independently of the communities that host it," he said. "For more than three decades, residents around Damang Mine have lived with both the economic opportunities and the social and infrastructure challenges of mining."

The chiefs said they will continue to monitor progress and hold DGML to its commitments. The real test, they said, will not be the first four months but whether investment in local skills, contracting and infrastructure outlasts the current commodity cycle.