The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, Lawyer Sammy Gyamfi, has called on the Global African Diaspora to transition from sending remittances to making direct investments that create jobs, industries and lasting wealth on the continent.
Speaking at the EMY Africa — Africa Rising Symposium in London on 30th July 2026, Mr. Gyamfi said Africa’s rise “can no longer be treated as a slogan” and must become “a lived reality” owned by Africans at home and abroad.
Addressing the theme “The growing relationship between Africa and its Global Diaspora, and why this moment matters”, Mr. Gyamfi posed the central question of the century:
“Will Africa rise as a supplier of raw materials, cheap labour, and consumer markets for others? Or will Africa rise as a continent of producers, innovators, owners, financiers, and builders?”
He described the diaspora as “one of Africa’s most powerful and strategic assets” — a reservoir of expertise, capital, networks, and systems experience that Africa must now master for itself.
While acknowledging that diaspora remittances have “educated families, paid medical bills, and sustained communities,” Lawyer Gyamfi said the moment demands more.
“Remittances are lifelines but investment builds self-sustaining engines.
Remittances help households survive but investment helps economies transform*” he stated.
He urged diaspora capital into manufacturing, agribusiness, logistics, IT, green energy, healthcare, creative industries and infrastructure, and called for mentorship, apprenticeships and enterprise building, not just ceremonial sponsorship.
Citing the Mastercard Foundation’s Africa Youth Employment Outlook 2026 Mr. Gyamfi noted Africa has 532 million young people aged 15-35, a figure that will keep rising to the 2070s.
“If we harness the potential of this youthful population, Africa becomes the world’s next great engine of productivity and creativity. If we fail them, then what ought to be a demographic advantage may well become a demographic crisis,” he warned.
Ghana’s Model: The GoldBod Story:
Using the Ghana Gold Board as a case study, he said transformation requires structures, not just sentiment.
He said GoldBod has helped address gold smuggling, formalized the supply chain, strengthened forex generation, and created opportunities for value addition.
The Board will also soon roll out “gold-backed tokenisation investment assets” to allow more Africans to own the continent’s mineral wealth.
“Africa’s rise must not mean African resources rising into foreign balance sheets while the African youth remain unemployed. Africa’s rise must mean African resources creating African industries, African jobs, African brands, African wealth, and African dignity,” he said.
Four-Point Appeal to the Diaspora:
Mr. Gyamfi proposed that the diaspora:
Finance African enterprises that produce, process, export, employ and scale
Engage based on mutual respect, bankable ideas, shared risk and shared reward.
Build investment vehicles and mentorship platforms* in productive sectors and,
Help Africa retain more value through value addition and value retention
He added that African governments must also deliver policy stability, contract sanctity, and transparent institutions to make diaspora investment thrive.
In closing, Lawyer Gyamfi linked the agenda to President John Dramani Mahama’s “reset” of Ghana’s economy, based on the principle that “Africans must own the commanding heights of the sectors shaping our future.”
“Africa’s youth are waiting for opportunity, not charity. Africa’s resources are waiting for African ownership, not discovery. We are done with predicting Africa’s future. The time to build that future is now,” he said.
“Let this be the generation that ensures that the wealth beneath Africa’s soil becomes dignity in African homes… My fellow Africans, Africa is rising. Let Africans rise with her.”
