Land versus livelihoods: Community perspectives on dispossession and marginalization in Ghana's mining sector

Abstract

Globally, land has significant socio-economic value since it is a major source of livelihood for people who use it for farming. Yet, mineral mining is reducing people's access to their land. This paper employs the global land grabbing literature to examine the political economy of land dispossession in Ghana's mining sector, with a focus on the activities of two multinational companies. The argument is that is that the dispossession that occurs due to the proliferation of mineral extraction undermines the potential contribution of mining to sustainable livelihood outcomes for people in host communities. To augment this argument, the paper draws upon primary data gathered using two methods namely, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions in addition to a plethora of secondary sources, on the community perspectives on dispossession and marginalization relative to land and livelihoods in Ghana's mining sector. Drawing upon such data, the paper also underscores the intersections of place (global and local) and agency (domestic and foreign) with the overall objective of using the case of Ghana to underscore how land dispossession remains an important driver of social injustice, marginalization, and poor livelihoods in mining communities.