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The gold mining sector in Ghana is said to be reeling under the pressure of the country�s unfavourable fiscal environment and declining gold price and is set to face a series of unpleasant consequences. These include the laying off of about 4,500 workers, reduction in taxes payable to government, loss of foreign exchange to the Bank of Ghana, curtailment of exploration activities, termination of supplier�s contracts and review of capital investments. The CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Dr Toni Aubynn, revealed this when he briefed the media in Sunyani. The Gold Mining Sector in Ghana is notable in the scheme of things in the country. The country is currently ranked the World�s Eighth Leading Producer of Gold according to the Goldfields Mineral Survey, with an output of 96.8 tonnes. Ghana Chamber of Mines is a private sector minerals industry association with a vision of being a respected, effective and unified voice for the mining industry. Its objectives include promoting and protecting the interest of the Mining Industry as well as provide thought leadership for the solution of national issues related to mining among others. The Chamber periodically reaches out to various segments of society to explain the complexities in mining to the ordinary man. Its latest outreach in the Brong-Ahafo Region was very well attended by media representatives in the Region, who were the sole invitees. The CEO of the Chamber, Dr Aubynn in his address stated that the Mining Industry is crucial to Ghana as one of the main contributors of revenue to the National coffers for the past few years. He revealed for instance that in 2012, the sector emerged the number one tax payer and the highest contributor to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA�s) domestic collections. He said the Mining sector paid about GH� 1.46 billion, representing 27% of the GRA�s Total Direct Taxes in 2012. The Sector again contributed GH� 893.77 million in Corporate Taxes, representing 36.98% of total company tax collected last year. But Dr Aubynn was quick to add that the sector is currently in crises thanks to high labour costs, relatively high cost of energy, high and still increasing fees and charges, the uncompetitive tax regime and the declining gold price on the international market. He said the combined effect of all of this is the unpleasant actions that the Industry has to take. The CEO revealed that Newmont for instance plans to lay off between 30 to 40% of its exploration staff, while generally companies are reviewing exploration, production expansion plans as well as green fields with preferences for those that provide optimal returns to the Companies. Dr Aubynn used the occasion to debunk allegations that the Mining Industry repatriates all their local mineral earnings abroad. He said nothing could be further from the truth since even though the law calls for 25% retention, statistics clearly show that mining firms on the average maintain 73% of mineral revenues in the Country.