News:
November 6, 2025
Member of Parliament for Manhyia North Akwasi Konadu has raised alarm over a worrying development that needs attention of the state.
He noted that beyond the environmental degradation, seventeen lives have been lost due to illegal mining activities (galamsey) from January to July this year.
Mr. Speaker, these are not mere statistics; these are Ghanaian lives: breadwinners, mothers, sons, and daughters lost to the reckless pursuit of unregulated mineral wealth, he noted in a statement on the floor of the House.
He recounted some recent and tragic incidents: On 8th January, 2025, two young men lost their lives in Osino, Fanteakwa, following the collapse of a galamsey. They were part of a group of seven operating in the pit during the early hours of the morning when the structure gave way and buried them alive. Just twelve days later, the nation woke up to the news of a violent confrontation between armed illegal miners and the joint military-security team of AngloGold Ashanti at their Obuasi concession.
In their attempt to forcefully breach a fenced operational area, eight lives were lost in what many described as an act of impunity, lawlessness, and desperation.
“Mr. Speaker, how many more lives must be lost before urgent and decisive action is taken, the prevalence of death and environmental collapse is a direct consequence of ineffective enforcement, lack of political will, and in some instances, the complicity of state actors and traditional authorities. While security operations have been launched and some arrests made, a number of these closed illegal mining sites resume activity within six months, pointing to a vicious cycle of impunity?”
Further, he called on government to revitalize and invest in community-based mining cooperatives, established under the previous government, and bring them under a robust regulatory framework that enforces strict environmental and safety standards.
These cooperatives must serve as legal, safe, and economically viable alternatives to illegal mining, especially for youth and rural populations who are most vulnerable to exploitation in the galamsey economy.
Despite Ghana being a signatory to numerous environmental and sustainable development protocols, our current trajectory undermines these commitments, he said.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com