6. Approval process

Approval from the Ghana EPA

Feedback from the public consultation meetings was drawn together into a draft ESIA which was submitted to the Ghana EPA for review in August 2009. In accordance with Ghana ESIA requirements, Ghana EPA disclosed the draft ESIA to the public for a 21 day review and comment period. Copies were also given to Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the coastal areas of the Western Region, as well as to government departments.

The consultation and review process culminated in a series of eight public hearings held between September and November 2009 in the Western Region and Accra. These hearings were conducted to ensure that people affected by our activities were given every opportunity to express their views and concerns. As the Jubilee Project was seen as a matter of national interest, we were required to include a national public hearing in Accra – the first of its kind in Ghana.

Comments from the EPA and comments raised during the public hearings were addressed in the final ESIA. The first part of a two stage approval process was received in early 2010.