Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources George Mireku Duker said that despite the Ministry's hard attempts to halt unlawful Small Scale Mining (Galamsey) operations in the nation, a joint effort is required to completely free the country of this threat.
Mr. Duker stated that the battle against illicit mining is a common obligation of all stakeholders and every Ghanaian to guarantee that the industry is adequately cleaned, with more community awareness and education.
The Deputy Minister stated that steps to combat "Galamsey" had been examined in order to deal with the concerns more directly. He stated that the drive to protect the country's water bodies is in full swing, with a number of speed boats being bought by river guards to monitor important water bodies, and that this involvement would support the military's efforts to stamp out any illicit mining operations on the rivers.
"It is critical that we protect our river bodies, which is one of the main logic for this whole fight, lest we risk importing water in a few years, and honestly, the story would have been worse without the government's intervention through the Ministry, such as Operation Vanguard and Operation Halt 1 and 2," he added. Reclamation, alternative livelihoods, gold traceability, and the development of a refinery, which he claimed is almost 90% complete, are among the main interventions being pushed out by the government to promote responsible mining and make Ghana the chosen mining center of Africa, according to him.
The Deputy Lands Minister also stated that some of the Ministry's engagement in the battle against illicit mining (galamsey) is being addressed through the extension of the Community Mining Scheme (CMS), which integrates host mining communities into the mining value chain.
He explained that the effort, which began during President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-first Addo's term, is one of the measures used to combat galamsey, with the goal of creating thousands of new and respectable jobs. Legally, under the supervision of the Minerals Commission, and solely for Ghanaians in host communities.
Mr. Duker explained that the Community Mining Scheme CMS is a policy that is intended to be consistent with the Minerals and Mining Act of 2006, which governs small-scale mining.
He also stated that the government hopes to create jobs through the plan by legalizing the participation of people in small-scale mining in host mining towns.
The Deputy Lands Minister added that the sanitization and control of small-scale mining are intended to prevent practices such as water contamination and that the government's purchase of Gold Katchas is also helping in this struggle.
Mr. Duker made these remarks on Citi TV in Accra on Wednesday, April 27, 2022.
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