The General Manager of Gold Fields Ghana Limited (Tarkwa mine), Mr. Stephen Osei-Bempah, was named Mining Personality of the Year (The President’s Award) at the 6th Ghana Mining Industry Awards (GMIA) held in Accra.
Mr. Osei-Bempah was honoured for playing a significant role in promoting the mining industry of Ghana during 2019. The flagship award is also in recognition of his exemplary leadership and demonstrable high ethical standards, which have seen Tarkwa Mine maintain its position as the leader in responsible mining in Ghana.
Organised by the Ghana Chamber of Mines, the GMIA is the only mining industry-focused awards scheme in Ghana, and celebrates excellence and responsible mining.
Mr. Osei-Bempah is a Mining Engineer with over 28 years of career experience. He first joined Gold Fields in 2003 as Senior Mining Engineer and rose to the position of Chief Mining Engineer before leaving the company in 2007. He re-joined Gold Fields in 2011 as Mining Manager of the Tarkwa Mine until his appointment as General Manager of Gold Fields’ Damang Mine in 2016. He was later appointed General Manager of the Tarkwa Mine in 2017.
Under his leadership, the Tarkwa Mine continues to set high standards in operational excellence, safety, business sustainability, environmental stewardship, local enterprise development, as well as host community development. Mr. Osei-Bempah attributes the gold mining company’s success to its committed employees.
“We have a great team of dedicated and hardworking individuals who ensure that we achieve our targets – while minding our safety, as we create and share value from our operations with our stakeholders,” Mr. Osei-Bempah said.
He added that: “I am truly humbled by this recognition, which wouldn’t have been possible without the immense support of the talented people I work with”.
Mr. Osei-Bempah noted that it is an honour to follow the footsteps of his boss, the Executive Vice President and Head of Gold Fields West Africa – Mr. Alfred Baku, who was named Mining Personality of the Year in 2019.
With a steady production of approximately 500,000 ounces annually, Tarkwa Mine is the single largest mine in Ghana and highest producing mine within the Gold Fields Group – which has operating mines in Australia, Chile, Peru and South Africa.