Ghana’s mineworkers union delivered a petition to the central bank on Thursday demanding over 380 million cedis ($34.55 million) in locked-up funds. The assets have been frozen since a sector cleanup.
According to Reuters, the Ghana Mine Workers’ Union submitted the petition on behalf of over 19,000 affected members. The trapped capital comprises provident funds, welfare savings, leave allowances, and severance payments.
The petition stems from a sweeping financial sector restructuring initiated by the Bank of Ghana in August 2017. The cleanup ultimately revoked licenses of more than 400 specialized deposit-taking institutions.
Union General Secretary Abdul-Moomin Gbana warned that inflation and soaring living costs are severely straining members. Labor leaders had restrained workers from demonstrating since 2021 based on unfulfilled regulatory assurances.
The petition escalation comes as Ghana struggles to sustain economic stabilization following a recent restructuration of its external debt under a $3 billion International Monetary Fund bailout framework.
