Ghana’s Environment Minister, Prof Frimpong-Boateng says 90% of illegal miners have stopped

In an interview on Accra-based Joy FM, he said “I can say 90 percent, by and large, [of] those who are doing galamsey, I can say about 90 percent have stopped. These galamsey people are people who have no money to buy concessions, have no money to buy excavators; they get their shovels and things and go to the bush and start digging. That is what we call galamsey – gather and sell – these are people we are targeting. So far, we have about 20,000 for community mining and I’m saying that so far we have 20,000 or more.”

Prof Frimpong-Boateng said the galamseyers have moved from the illegal activities into community mining as streamlined by the government.

“So far, we have about 20,000 or more who have moved from galamsey into community mining. These are people who have been vetted in Ashanti, Eastern, Western, Upper East, Upper West, and Central regions.”

He debunked the assertion that more people are still engaging in galamsey activities. Prof Frimpong-Boateng said, “If some people are in illegal mining, it does not mean that galamsey is widespread and is bad as it was two years ago.”

“We had a meeting, the National Taskforce Committee on Illegal Mining had a meeting on the 14 of January of this month where we discussed, and some of the areas that we saw having illegal mining activities were discussed; And, so, two days after the meeting, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources went to one of the sites to conduct that exercise, so, this are things that we have people who inform us on the ground [about], we have drones, we have other ways of determining; everyday something is happening,” he added.

The minister added that some miners who have been licensed have also been engaging in some illegal mining activities.

Prof Frimpong-Boateng said the taskforce has impounded about 140 excavators. This is contrary to the about 500 excavators that were alleged to have been seized by the Taskforce during John Peter Amewu’s era as Minister of Lands and Natural Resources.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo established the National Taskforce Committee otherwise known as Operation Vanguard to fight the destruction of water bodies particularly due to illegal mining.