The WAIMM groups provide the relevant platform for skill enhancement and knowledge sharing where specific professionals in the core sectors of the mining and petroleum industry meet, network and discuss pertinent and pressing specific issues in their field of practice.
Our focus is to provide career and professional development to advance the knowledge and skillset of students, academia , industry professionals, and companies in the resources sector by creating the platform where they can access new and emerging advancement in industry practices.
Professor Daniel Mireku-Gyimah is a chartered mining engineer and a professor of mining engineering with many years of professional and academic experience. He holds Dsc (Honoris causa), PhD (Computer-Aided Mine Design & Planning), Diploma of the Imperial College (DIC) from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London and MSc (Mining Engineering) from the Moscow Mining Institute, Moscow.
Prof. Mireku-Gyimah powered the processes that upgraded the KNUST School of Mines into the Western University College of KNUST and also spearheaded the processes that transformed the College into the full-fledged University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa.
He is a Fellow of the Ghana Institution of Engineers: Member of Institution of Mining and Metallurgy, UK; New York Academy of Sciences, USA; Ghana Institution of Geoscientists, Ghana and American Society of Mining Engineers, USA. Prof. Mireku-Gyimah joined the KNUST School of Mines, as a lecturer in 1981 and rose steadily through the ranks to become the first full professor of the University of Mines and Technology in 1999. He has over 60 publications to his credit.
He has served on a number of Committees in the University including the following: Member of Executive Committee; Appointments and Promotions Committee; Search Committee for the Appointment of Vice Chancellor for KNUST; KNUST Statutes Review Committee; Chairman of the College of Engineering Committee, Chairman of Aerospace Engineering Committee and a Member (in attendance) of the KNUST Council.
Prof. Mireku-Gyimah has also served as Head of the Mining Engineering Department, the last Principal of the KNUST School of Mines at Tarkwa, the first and only Provost of the Western University College of KNUST.
He was the leader of the Panel, which drew up the computer science syllabus for polytechnics in the country; member of the National Disaster Management Organisation; the Technical Committee of the Ghana Chamber of Mines; the Editorial Board of the Ghana Journal of Science, Editor-in-Chief of the Ghana Mining Journal and Vice Chairman of the Wassa Fiase Education Fund.
Prof. Mireku-Gyimah is the Chairman of Tarkwa Hospital Endowment Fund, Chairman of Takoradi Polytechnic Council and has provided professional services to a number of mining companies in Ghana and abroad which has included: AngloGold Ashanti Ltd, Obuasi, Ghana; Ghana Manganese Company Ltd, Nsuta, Ghana; Semafo Company Ltd of France, Panasqueira Mine of Portugal and Patrician Gold Resources of Canada.
Prof. Mireku-Gyimah is the originator of the collaboration between the University of Mines and Technology and other universities abroad including Penn State University and Montana Tech University in the USA. He is a member of the international Alliance for Earth Science and Engineering Development in Africa.
He is the foundation Vice Chancellor of the University of Mines and Technology and served in this role for 9 years (2004 – 2013) with a wealth of academic leadership, managerial, administrative and entrepreneurship skills as well as focused determination and dynamism to the University.
He is married to Prof. Patricia Beatrice Mireku-Gyimah, a Lecturer in Communications Skills at the University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa with four children.
Ing. Dr Benjamin Ofosu Adoo received an Associate-ship in Mining Engineering, ACSM, from the Camborne School of Metalliferous Mines, Cornwall, England in 1971 and a Master of Engineering Degree from McGill University, Quebec, Canada in 1987.
He has five decades of mining experience and is recognised as one of the country’s most senior mining executives progressing through the ranks from a graduate engineer to Mine Manager in a record time of nine years. He served as General Manager of the underground gold mining operations of Prestea and Tarkwa Goldfields and General Manager for Dunkwa Goldfields, a gold dredging operation of the erstwhile State Gold Mining Corporation of Ghana spanning almost two decades from 1971 to 1990.
For the fifteen years ended September 2004, Ing. Dr. Adoo served as Deputy Managing Director and Managing Director representing the government of Ghana interest on the Board of Ghana Bauxite Co. Ltd., an 80% owned subsidiary of multi-national aluminium company, Alcan Inc. headquartered in Montreal, Canada.
From October 2004 to February 2010, he was the premiere Managing Director of African Gold Group Ghana Limited, AGG, a gold exploration company with operations in Ghana and Mali, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. AGG’s mine at Kobada in Mali is currently in operation. He also chaired the Board of AGG for two years from 2008 to 2010.
In March 2010, he joined Keegan Resources Ghana Limited, KRGL, a Canadian Gold Exploration company listed on the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges based in Ghana as Managing Director.
Ing. Dr. Adoo acted as a representative of Ghana’s Mining Industry on many occasions including from March 2010 – June 2010 a role with the World Bank study on “Burkina Faso: The Mining Sector and Business Enterprise Development”.
In March 2014, KRGL merged with PMI, an Australian exploration company to form Asanko Gold Ghana Limited and appointed Ing. Dr. Adoo as its Managing Director. He was later appointed as Asanko’s Executive Chairman and in April 2016 on his retirement from managerial duties appointed the local Board Chairman, a position he held until Asanko Joint Ventured with GoldFields Ghana Limited in the last quarter of 2018. His wealth of operational experience proved invaluable in assisting and guiding the Project team through the development of the Asanko Gold Inc.’s Esaase and Manso Nkran Gold Projects in the Amansie West District of the Ashanti Region to the construction and production phases from 2012 to 2014. The Asanko Gold Mine at Nkran started gold production in record time of under 24 months.
He is a past President of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, having served a full two-year term ending in 2001. In September 2004, he was made an Honorary Member of the Council of the Ghana Chamber of Mines. Again, in August, 2012, the University of Mines & Technology, Tarkwa conferred a Doctor of Science, “Honoris Causa” on him for his contribution to Mining in Ghana.
Ing. Dr. Adoo was appointed as Chairman of the team constituted by the Vice President of Ghana on 3rd October, 2017 to undertake a feasibility study with specific terms of reference of Ghana’s Aluminium Industry.
He was appointed as part of the 11-member Board of Directors of the newly instituted Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation, GIADEC in March, 2019 to ensure that a vibrant aluminium industry is established in the country.
He is a Fellow of the West African Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (WAIMM) and the Ghana Institution of Engineers.
Today, we celebrate his achievement and contribution to the sustainability of the west African mining industry and the role he has played in the global mining community.
The Honorable Mrs. Quartey is Managing Partner and Founding Director of BVM Advisory Services (GH) Ltd and has been with BVM Advisory since its inception in January 2000. She is also currently a director of BVM Advisory. She is a finance executive with more than 26 years’ experience in the areas of management, finance, development and operations in the precious metals industry, banking and public finance. She has led major mining treasury, corporate and project finance operations, and recently managed the real sector, revenue and tax policies of the government of Ghana. Mrs. Quartey was the Group Treasurer of Ashanti Goldfields Company from October 1991 until 1999 when she resigned to set up her advisory firm. She worked for Citibank NA in the USA from 2004 until 2008 when she returned to Ghana to continue running her advisory firm. Mrs. Quartey was the Deputy Finance Minister of the Republic of Ghana from 2014 to 2017 and served as alternate Governor to the World Bank Board and African Development Bank Board during same time. Mrs. Quartey holds a Bachelor’s degree in Development Planning from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and a Master’s degree in Business Administration (Finance) from Dalhousie University. She has recently completed a LLM (International Commerce) degree from Salford University, UK. Mrs. Quartey served as a director of GCB Bank Ghana Ltd. from July 2014 to January 2017, Ghana Water Company Ltd. from January 2013 to January 2017, Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, GH from July 2014 to January 2017, Social Security National Investment Trust, GH from July 2014 to January 2017 and SIMNET Ghana Ltd. July 2013 to August 2016. Mrs. Quartey is also currently the local Chair of Board of Chifeng Golden Star Resources Wassa mine, MOKASA Women’s Trust Foundation (Ghana) and Green Pastures & Still Waters (GH) Ltd.
Charles Amoah is a metallurgist with over 28years of experience in the mining industry. He holds BSc (Hons) in Metallurgical Engineering from University of science and Technology, Kumasi in 1991. He also holds a Certificate in Management Development from University of Stellenbosch and an MSc degree in Mineral Processing from University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) Tarkwa – Ghana in 2011. He is presently a PhD candidate in the department of mineral engineering, UMaT.
He had his National Service at the then KNUST School of Mines as a teaching Assistant at the Mineral Technology Department where he was subsequently appointed as an assistant lecturer in 1992.
He worked with Teberebie Goldfields Limited in Tarkwa (now Anglogold Ashanti Ghana Ltd’s Iduapriem mine) as a plant shift Supervisor from 1993 to 1997 at both the Adsorption, Desorption and Refinery (ADR) and the crushing plants from where he then joined Abosso Goldfields Ltd, Damang Mine as a plant shift supervisor in 1997.
He held several positions at Damang Mine which includes, plant Metallurgist, chief metallurgist and metallurgical superintendent. He was appointed as the Metallurgical Manager of the Damang Mine in 2006 until 2012.
He was appointed General Manager of Adansi Gold Company Ltd, Obotan project, which was a subsidiary of PMI Gold Incorporated in 2012. After the merging of Keegan Gold Resources Ltd and Adansi Gold Company Ltd, he was confirmed as the General Manager of Asanko Gold Mine in 2014 where he was very instrumental and played an exceptional role during the permitting of the Mine, design of the plant, construction of the plant and operation of Asanko Gold Mine in 2016. The construction was done safely, within budget and ahead of time. The operation reached commercial production three months after commissioning.
Charles Amoah is currently the Vice-President – Stakeholder Relations for Asanko Gold Ghana Ltd. Prior to that, he was appointed the Executive General Manager of the Asanko Gold Mine from 2017 – 2020, which included both the Obotan and Esaase mining operations.
He believes in mentoring and the training of the young industry professional for greater sustainability of the mining industry and sees the training of current crop of engineers to replace the professionals leading the industry currently as a priority.
He is a Fellow of the West African Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (WAIMM).
Aïstan Konate-Siewe is the Head of the Environmental Audits Department at the National Environment Agency, Cote D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Prior to her current position, she was sworn in as the Environmental Auditor of the same institution and has over 15years experience in her field of work.
Aïstan holds a PhD and MSc (2004) in Human Capital Development and Geography (Environment options) respectively from the UNIVERSITE DE COCODY/INSTITUT DE GEOGRAPHIE TROPICALE.
Aïstan chairs the Commission of Environmental Audit and Environmental Management Plan Reports Validation, with the responsibility of implementing the Environmental Audit procedure in mining and oil companies throughout the national territory and ensuring the environmental compliance of these companies.
She adds to her credentials certificates of capacity building in Occupational Health and Safety, rehabilitation of mining sites, solid waste and wastewater management and environmental management of mines; from Perth-University of Western Australia (2013), Murdoch University-Australia (2016), University of Mahidol, Thailand (2017) and European Union and the Swedish Geological Service (2018) respectively.