Akufo-Addo re-affirms commitment to clamp down on illegal mining

Speaking at the National Consultative Forum on Small-Scale Mining in Accra on Wednesday, April 14, 2021, the president opined that although mining can create jobs, improve livelihoods and generate wealth, it cannot, and must not do so by damaging the very environment that produces the riches.

“I will not hesitate to act where the evidence is hard before the police. And I will do so irrespective of the standing of the person or persons involved,” he said.

“Mining becomes a danger to the society when, after extracting the gold, diamond, or other stones and minerals, the land is left degraded and poisoned with toxic materials…,” the President added.

He however, called on members of the forum to come up with a solution to the problem of illegal small scale mining that has destroyed the country’s water bodies and forest cover.

President Akufo-Addo also noted that he wants the outcome of the forum to be devoid of partisan politics.

"We cannot have one part of the political divide campaigning for galamsey in the bush and the other waging an official fight against galamsey in the open.”

“It is absolutely crucial that the deliberations of this consultative dialogue be candid and devoid of partisanship or narrow parochial interests,” the he added.

The forum will be a two-day roundtable discussion on challenges confronting the small-scale mining sector with inputs from key mining experts, the Small-Scale Mining Association, the Coalition of Civil Society Against Illegal Small-Scale Mining, among others.