President John Dramani Mahama has called on traditional authorities to intensify their involvement in the fight against illegal mining, urging chiefs to help protect Ghana’s forest reserves and water bodies from destruction caused by galamsey.
He said the government needed the cooperation of chiefs to sustain gains made through enforcement operations and prevent illegal miners from returning to areas cleared by security personnel.
Speaking at Jubilee House on Tuesday, October 13, during a courtesy call by the Western North Regional House of Chiefs, led by Ɔgyeahɔhoɔ Nana Yaw Gyebi II, President of the National House of Chiefs, Mr Mahama said traditional authorities had an important role to play because of their influence within local communities.
“We’ll need the help of our chiefs in the fight against galamsey because you live in the community with the people,” he said.
The President acknowledged that some anti-illegal mining operations had encountered resistance from young people and traditional authorities, with some confrontations resulting in deaths after soldiers discharged firearms.
He said stronger collaboration between chiefs and enforcement agencies was necessary to reduce such incidents and improve efforts to protect the country’s natural resources.
Mr Mahama disclosed that the government had cleared nine forest reserves previously classified as high-risk zones because of extensive environmental destruction and the presence of heavily armed illegal miners.
He said soldiers had been stationed in the cleared reserves to prevent illegal miners from returning, following earlier operations in which miners re-entered some areas after military personnel withdrew.
“Now we’ve cleared nine of those red zones. There are no galamseys in those forest reserves. And now we’ve stationed the soldiers there,” he said.
The President also announced that the government had allocated an additional GH¢400 million in the 2027 budget to recruit more Blue Water Guards to patrol water bodies as part of efforts to intensify the fight against illegal mining.
He explained that although enforcement teams had cleared illegal mining equipment from major river channels, sediment continued to flow from tributaries, some of which extend for hundreds of kilometres.
Mahama said the government planned to invest US$10 billion in job-rich sectors under its new economy policy, including tourism, to create alternative employment opportunities and discourage young people from engaging in illegal mining.
He urged chiefs to work with the government to protect rivers and forests, stressing that community support would be essential to sustaining the fight against galamsey.
