Agyapa royalties deal not suspended - Finance Ministry

The deal which has received public condemnation reports stated was suspended but the government through the Ministry of Finance said a publication claiming the suspension of the transaction after a meeting with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) is untrue.

Mark Agyemang, the Technical Manager for the Public Interest and the Accountability Committee (PIAC), in an interview on Accra-based Starr FM revealed that the Agyapa Royalties deal has been suspended.

He said the deal has been temporarily halted to allow broader consultations and address concerns raised by several Civil Society Organisations regarding the deal after a meeting with the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.

The Finance Ministry in a statement acknowledging meeting with CSOs on Wednesday, September 2, 2020, as part of efforts to broaden consultations on the deal said no such decision was arrived at to suspend it.

Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Ken-Ofori-Atta Pulse Ghana

It said "The Ministry wishes to state that, the Agyapa Royalties transaction has not been suspended as is being reported on the Ghanaweb portal. We wish to also state that Mr. Mark Agyemang, Technical Manager of the Public Interest and Accountability Committee, who is purported to have said this in an interview with Starr FM, was not in this meeting.

"The main outcome of the meeting as acknowledged by both sides was that the government had fulfilled the requirements of the law. There was, however, the need for broader consultations to ensure the buy-in of all Ghanaians.

"The meeting with the CSOs was one such consultation and the Ministry agreed with them to further broaden the consultations and to solicit further input from them and other Ghanaian constituencies going forward.

"A number of concerns raised by the CSOs included registration of the entity in a tax haven, transparency, how the values arrived, and what the country stood to benefit from the Agyapa Royalty Transaction. After their concerns were aptly addressed by the Hon. Minister for Finance and his Deputy, they called on the government to engage other institutions and stakeholders. At no point was there any suggestion that the transaction is being halted as being reported."