ACCRA, Ghana, 13th October: President John Dramani Mahama has announced plans to allocate an additional GH¢400 million in the 2027 Budget to recruit more Blue Water Guards to intensify the fight against illegal mining and protect Ghana’s water bodies.
The President said the additional funding would strengthen efforts to prevent illegal miners from polluting rivers and waterways through the use of changfang machines.
Speaking during a courtesy call by chiefs of the Western North Region at the Presidency, President Mahama appealed to traditional authorities to support the government’s campaign against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
He said chiefs are critical to the success of the campaign because of their close relationships with communities where illegal mining activities take place.
“We need the help of our chiefs in the fight against galamsey because you live in the communities with the people,” he stated.
President Mahama disclosed that the government had already destroyed several changfang machines and cleared some major river channels of the equipment.
However, he explained that pollution continued to flow into cleared rivers from tributaries extending hundreds of kilometres, making sustained monitoring and enforcement necessary.
The President also reported progress in efforts to reclaim forest reserves previously classified as red zones because of extensive destruction and the dangers posed by heavily armed illegal miners.
He said the government had cleared all nine identified red zones and stationed soldiers in the affected areas to prevent illegal miners from returning.
According to him, previous attempts to reclaim some of the reserves had been undermined when illegal miners returned after soldiers withdrew.
President Mahama said the military would remain deployed in the cleared areas to protect the forest reserves.
He further disclosed that Goldbod had begun working with the military to reclaim destroyed land and replant forests with economic trees.
The programme involves using bulldozers to level degraded land, with the Forestry Commission expected to support the reclamation exercise.
The President also highlighted the social challenges associated with illegal mining, revealing that some Senior High School students had been found working in illegal mining pits.
He said some of the young people cited financial difficulties and the inability of their parents to fund their education as reasons for engaging in the activity.
President Mahama said the government needed to combine law enforcement with the creation of alternative livelihoods to discourage young people from entering illegal mining.
He pointed to the proposed US$10 billion New Economy Policy, which is expected to invest in employment-generating sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and tourism.
The President said the initiative is intended to create economic opportunities that would reduce the attraction of galamsey, particularly among young people.
He urged chiefs and other traditional authorities to collaborate with government agencies in protecting forests, rivers and other natural resources.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭