Why is Ghana losing the war against illegal gold mining

Ghana, like most resource-rich countries, is saddled and inundated with resource curse challenges. Key among them is the problem of illegal small-scale gold mining activities (ISSGMAs), which is mercilessly robbing the nation of its ecological integrity, despite attempts by successive governments to remedy the situation. In the midst of this challenge, Ghana, year in …

"Collective approach needed to address the illegal mining," …

Kumasi, Nov. 19, GNA – Mr Daniel Dotse, Co-founder of Lead for Ghana (LFG), has stressed the need for a collective approach to address the illegal mining issue, commonly known as "galamsey" in Ghana. ... Mr Donkor said as the nation waited for the president to address the menace of illegal mining and poor mining activities in the country ...

Gold Over Forest: A Surge in Illegal Mining in …

Since 2007, illegal mining operations locally known as "galamsey" have ravaged Ghana's forests and bodies of water. A report by the World Resource Institute shows that Ghana is losing its forests at a 60% rate, faster …

"Unearthing the Hidden Perils: A Comprehensive Review of Illegal Mining …

With the inception of an Economic Recovery Programme (ERP) by the government in 1983, Ghana's minerals and mining sector has seen a major resurgence over the past one and a half decades.

The fight over Ghana's illegal gold rush exposes election risks

Adwoa Pokuaa Boaduo, a mining engineer who wrote a doctoral thesis on the potential for artisanal and small-scale mining reform in Ghana, says a lack of compliance checks makes it relatively easy ...

Illegal Ghana gold mining causing widespread disruption

Illegal gold mining in Ghana picked up this year following an almost 30% rise in global gold prices, despite military operations to shut them down.

Environment and development: analysing the impact of …

Abstract. This study examines the impact of Ghana-China diplomatic relations on government efforts to combat illegal gold mining in Ghana. While diplomatic ties between the two nations foster cooperation, trade, and economic growth, the environmental damage caused by illegal Chinese miners has raised concerns.

(PDF) Effect of small-scale illegal mining on surface water …

The government of Ghana responding to public outcry against the negative effects of "galamsey", placed a ban on illegal small-scale mining activities in March 2017.

GOVERNMENT COMMITTED TO THE FIGHT AGAINST ILLEGAL MINING

The Government of Ghana wishes to provide an update on its fight against illegal and irresponsible mining. Contrary to suggestions by the main opposition party that the fight is a charade and in a final state of glaring defeat the fight has achieved significant, the fight has achieved significant results and is now moving into a new phase with the community mining …

illegal mining in ghana by administrator 2013

Oct 11, 2018· The absence of government action in the face of such illegal mining in rivers, both prior to and post-2013 task force (Crawford and Botchwey, 2017), has led to the current crisis where the severe pollution of arterial rivers is now perceived by the Ghana Water Company as threatening future water supplies.

Escalating illegal mining in Ghana: Research Associations …

The RSA of CSIR and GAEC therefore, called on the government of Ghana to take urgent, decisive, and sustained actions to address the galamsey menace. The Associations call for immediate suspension of all illegal small-scale mining activities in Ghana until there was support for Sustainable Mining Practices.

(PDF) A Political Economy of Regulatory Policy: …

A recent report indicated that between June and July 2013, about 4500 Chinese nationals were arrested and deported for engaging in illegal mining in Ghana.8 Research by Hilson et al. (2014, 292) suggests that "in Ghana, the number of …

Addressing the Illegal Mining Menace in Ghana with

Ghana's small-scale mining sector has historically supplied livelihoods to rural people, but a rising number of illegal mining activities has shifted this activity into a more destructive force. Rivers and farmlands in places rich in gold resources, such as Ashanti, Western, and Eastern regions, have suffered as a consequence, with mining ...

Illegal mining threatening food security in Upper East

According to the General Agriculture Workers Union (GAWU) of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Ghana has lost 2.5 million hectares of its forest reserve to illegal and uncontrolled mining. Again, the Ghana Cocoa Board also reported in 2022 that, the country lost 19,000 hectares of cocoa farmlands to illegal mining, throwing a lot of farmers out ...

Causes and Effects of Illegal Gold Mining (Galamsey) Activities …

In their repeated documentation of the dynamics of artisanal and small-scale mining activities in Ghana, Hilson and Potter (2003:237) questioned why the "illegal gold mining activity is so ...

Water pollution in Ghana has reached alarming …

Illegal small-scale mining, or galamsey, is the primary driver of water pollution in Ghana. This practice involves both Ghanaians and foreigners, including Chinese nationals and individuals from neighbouring West African …

Mapping Illegal mining in Southwest Ghana

This research presents data and generalizable methods to quantify the spatial distribution of gold mining along the Pra River in southwestern Ghana, which has become a national menace. The data used are land cover maps for 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2021 with three land cover categories: Illegal Artisanal-small scale mining (ASM), Vegetation, and Other.

Environmental Impact of Illegal Mining in Ghana …

Uncontrolled small-scale and illegal mining activities popularly known as "galamsey" in Ghana are alarming each passing day. More people are engaging in this illegal mining, which is, mining without any permit or license …

The Reasons The Criminal Liability For Illegal Mining In Ghana …

The NPP government shouldn't have waited for the people's complaints about the effects of illegal mining on their lives, the environment, and the premature birth of malformed children by mothers before they start to do something about it. ... is something that perplexes me, considering his administration has caused the collapse of the economy ...

A Political Economy of Regulatory Policy: The Case of 'Illegal' …

Recent reports indicate that 'illegal' artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) continues to flourish in mining communities in Ghana, despite several attempts by governmental …

Statement on Illegal Mining

illegal mining (including illegal small-scale mining such as galamsey) and to provide punishment for it, the government has proved unwilling, unable and/or reluctant to enforce the law. The two versions of 'Operation Halt,' the military operation to root out illegal mining, have also petered out.

Coalition Against Galamsey slams Akufo-Addo's 'shameful

The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) reports that over 68% of cocoa farmlands in the Ashanti Region, 81% in the Eastern Region, and 74% in the Western Region have been severely affected by illegal mining.

John Mahama pledges to audit all concessions and punish illegal …

The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has pledged to audit all concessions issued and identify the beneficial owners of such concessions by the Akufo-Addo government when he assumes office in January 2025. John Dramani Mahama, threatened that "Concession owners will be held responsible for illegal mining within their concession areas. …

The Historical Development of the Illegal Mining Sector in …

This paper draws on the theoretical foundations of public administration and the different phases of governance as an analytical lens to scrutinize illegal small-scale mining in Ghana. It argues …

Thousands demonstrate in Accra against illegal mining in Ghana

Thousands took to the streets of Accra, demanding the government to put an end to illegal mining in Ghana, also known as Galamsey, and denouncing its harmful impact on the environment.

Water pollution in Ghana has reached alarming levels, with illegal …

The scale of the problem is massive – between 2008 and 2013 alone, over 50,000 Chinese nationals entered Ghana to engage in illegal gold mining[4]. ... The water pollution crisis in Ghana, largely driven by illegal mining activities, poses a severe threat to public health, the environment, and the country's economic future. ...

NATURAL RESOURCE EXPLOITATION AND NATIONAL …

Illegal gold mining is an acute problem in Ghana. Activities of illegal miners threaten the environmental and social unity of the country. This research, however, highlights illegal

Golden Migrants: The Rise and Impact of Illegal Chinese …

scale mining in Ghana with special focus on illegal mining. The rest lays out the theoretical and analytical framework, the methodology, the scope of Chinese involvement in the supply chain of illegal mining, the impact of Chinese involvement in galamsey, and concluding remarks. Contextualization of the Chinese Search for Gold in Ghana

Can we win the battle against illegal mining?

One of the key economic and political challenges that confronted the first Akufo-Addo Administration was destruction of the environment and the pollution of major rivers through illegal mining, commonly called 'galamsey'. ... The fight against illegal mining has long been fought in Ghana, but never won; and I wonder if it will ever be won ...

Impact Of Illegal Mining (galamsey) On Local Ecosystems

In the Western Region of Ghana, illegal mining has led to severe deforestation and significant water pollution, particularly affecting the Ankobra River. The rampant activities of illegal miners have resulted in the destruction of vast forest areas, which are crucial for maintaining local biodiversity and regulating the climate. ...

Only two Chinese citizens in Ghana's prisons despite …

Ghana's renewed fight against illegal mining between 2017 and 2021 saw the arrests of hundreds of Chinese illegal miners either as sponsors or workers at illegal mining sites. However, statistics of foreign nationals in Ghana's prisons, which the Ghana Prisons Service provided to The Fourth Estate, showed that as of July 2021, only two ...

(PDF) Golden Migrants: The Rise and Impact of Illegal …

Sustainability. While the engagement of Chinese migrants in small-scale mining in Ghana has gained traction in scholarship, the extant literature pays little attention to how the relationship between the so-called formal institutions (e.g., the Minerals Commission and Ministry of Land and Natural Resources) and informal institutions (e.g., the chieftaincy and customary land …

Chinese participation in Ghana's illegal small-scale gold …

The findings suggest that illegal mining reflects local grievances and concerns over broader systemic distributional inequities in Ghana's mineral policy on two related fronts: …

2013 in retrospect: Illegal mining, Ghana's bane

Mr Kwasi Amoako-Attah, Member of Parliament (MP) for the Atiwa West Constituency in the Eastern Region has tagged the fight against illegal mining ?galamsey? as the biggest …

STATEMENT ON ILLEGAL MINING

the offence of illegal mining (including illegal small-scale mining such as galamsey) and to provide punishment for it, the government has proved unwilling, unable and/or reluctant to enforce the law. The two versions of 'Operation Halt,' the military operation to …

Digging Deeper: The Impact of Illegal Mining on …

Illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey, has become a significant and pervasive issue in Ghana, posing substantial challenges to the country's economy, environment, and social fabric …

"Illegal" Gold Mining Operations in Ghana: Implication for …

However, illegal mining (both foreign and Ghanaian nationals) continues unabated in the country despite government efforts to curb these activities (Aryee, 2003; Darimani et al., 2013; Benmudez-Lugo, 2016). Illegal mining is defined locally (Ghanaian context) as mining operations in which miners without a license have no concessions of their ...

Galamsey (Illegal Mining) in Ghana: The Unfair Narrative …

Illegal mining, locally galamsey, remains one of Ghana's most urgent national challenges. Its detrimental impacts on society, the economy, and the environment are extensively documented. A disquieting narrative has emerged, influenced by organised labour, civil society organisations (CSOs), the media, youth activists, and prominent public ...