The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Minerals Commission have procured five (5) speed boats to help in the fight against illegal mining on water bodies. The six-point-five metres (6.5m) Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boats (RHIB) will be deployed on Rivers Ankobrah, Prah, Birim and the Black Volta to rid these water bodies of any form of mining. This came to light when the sector Minister, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, MP, commissioned these boats at Beposo in the Western Region.
The procurement of these speeds boats is part of measures being adopted by Government to find a lasting solution to illegal mining and the pollution of water bodies. Speaking at the commissioning on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, the Minister said the boats will be operated by the security services of the country, and River Guards to be recruited by the Minerals Commission. He said water bodies remain Red Zones for mining, and Operation Halt II will continue to support the other security services and the River Guards to protect these water bodies.
Mr. Jinapor said Government was not against small scale mining, but committed to promoting an orderly, viable, sustainable and environmentally-sound small scale mining industry which is anchored on integrity. He mentioned some of the measures being taking to promote environmentally-sound small scale mining as the introduction of the mercury-free Gold Katcha and the revamping of the Community Mining Schemes.
“The Government of President Akufo-Addo, is not against small scale mining. What we are against, is any form of mining that pays no regard to the environment, that is done contrary to law and the established protocols, that threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of our citizens, and we will not hesitate in cracking the whip on those who engage in such illegalities,” the Minister said.
He called on all Ghanaians, and particularly communities along the river bodies to be vigilant, and support the fight against illegal mining, by reporting those involves in these activities.
Earlier on, the Minister commissioned a weighbridge in Apemanim in the Ahanta West Municipality of the Western Region. The weighbridge is to help determine the actual volumes of minerals transported from the mines to the port. Speaking at the event, Mr. Jinapor noted that weak monitoring system in the haulage of minerals, particularly bauxite and manganese, is causing huge loses to the State, through overloading and inaccurate recording of figures.
He said Government has constructed bridges at the mine sites of Ghana Manganese Company and Ghana Bauxite Company, and two additional bridges at Apemanim and Awaso, to track and confirm the actual volumes of manganese and bauxite transported from the mines to the Takoradi Port. This, he noted, will help the State get what is due it from the resources.
Mr. Jinapor said Government’s medium to long term agenda, is to add value to these minerals, and build an integrated aluminium and iron and steel industries here in Ghana. But while Government is working towards this ambitious goal, it was important to ensure that we get value from the minerals we produce, and hence the weighbridge. He said the weighbridge will also prevent overloading, which causes rapid deterioration of the roads within the haulage corridor.
He pledged Government’s commitment to ensure the proper management and utilisation of the mineral resources of the country for the benefit of the Ghanaian people.
(Below is the full speech).
ADDRESS BY THE MINISTER FOR LANDS AND NATURAL RESOURCES, HON. SAMUEL A. JINAPOR, MP, AT THE COMMISSIONING OF PATROL BOATS FOR THE MONITORING OF RIVER BODIES, HELD AT BEPOSO ON TUESDAY 26TH JULY, 2022
Nana Chairman;
Western Regional Minister;
Minister for Transport;
Minister for Water Resources and Sanitation;
Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources;
Chief of Defence Staff;
Commander of the Western Naval Command;
Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives;
Chief Executive Officer of Minerals Commission;
Executive Secretary of Water Resources Commission;
Director-General of Ghana Maritime Authority;
Executive Director of Environmental Protection Agency;
Managing Director of Ghana Water Company Ltd.;
Representatives of Regulatory Agencies;
Leadership of the Ghana National Association of Small Scale Miners;
Nananom
Distinguished Invited Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
This week, we celebrate World Nature Conservation Day, on July 28, 2022, a day dedicated to creating awareness about protecting the world’s environment and natural resources, and I dare say, there could not have been any better time to undertake this important task.
Today must be a happy day, not only for the residents of Beposo and its environs, but for the people of Ghana, and the millions of people who rely on our water bodies for their livelihoods.
Nana Chair, as you are aware, the small-scale mining industry contributes almost forty percent (40%) to our nation’s gold output. Unfortunately, as a result of its impact on the environment in recent years, small scale mining has, sadly, become associated with environmental degradation and water pollution. These negative environmental impacts reached their crescendo, between 2014 and 2016, with a near total breakdown of the regulation in the sector.
In his State of the Nation Address, last year, the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, called for a dispassionate, non-partisan and broad-based National Dialogue on small scale mining. This led to the National Dialogue, where we adopted a fifteen-point resolution, aimed at tackling the menace head-on, and two Regional Dialogues in the Forest and Savannah Zones.
Since then, we have declared water bodies as Red Zones for Mining, and suspended all reconnaissance, prospecting and/or exploration activities in Forest Reserves. We have placed a ban on the manufacture, fabrication, and/or use of the floating device popularly known as Changfan, one of the main equipment used for the pollution of our water bodies.
We rolled out Operation Halt II, to enforce these measures, with an additional mandate to demobilise and decommission all equipment used for illegal mining in Red Zones.
To promote sustainable small scale mining, we revamped the Community Mining Scheme, and developed an Operational Manual, setting standards for their operation. So far, a total of thirty-four (34) of these Schemes have been commissioned since last year, with an additional eleven (11) ready to be commissioned in the coming days.
To provide alternative sources of livelihood for those who are, unavoidably, affected by the measures being taken to clamp down on illegal mining, Government introduced a National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme (NAELP), as a substitute to illegal mining. The Programme, which includes reclamation, afforestation and reforestation, already provides direct employment for some three hundred and two (302) people, and indirect employment to over eighty thousand (80,000) people.
And last month, we marked another important milestone in the fight against illegal mining, particularly, as it relates to the pollution of our water bodies, with the commissioning of one hundred (100) mercury-free gold processing equipment, known as Gold Katcha. Apart from their capacity to recover about ninety percent (90%) of gold from the ore, and thereby giving small scale miners much more gold, Gold Katchas provide an alternative means of extracting the gold without polluting our water bodies and the natural environment.
All these measures have resulted in some successes, with some of the water bodies visibly clearing up. As you will recall, last year, I embarked on a helicopter tour on these river bodies, which I ended in this very town, to assess the level of pollution of the rivers. And today, I see some improvement, although not at where we want to be.
We have observed that there are still some recalcitrant nation-wreckers, who seek only their selfish interest, at the expense of the national interest, by conniving with others, both locals and foreigners, to outwit our security agencies to pollute these rivers.
Indeed, there are some who have resorted to mining in the night with armed guards, when the security agencies have finished their operation. We have engaged all the sixteen Regional Ministers and their Regional Security Councils, to take these matters up and deal with them upfront.
But, as part of a more permanent solution, we have procured five (5) fully-fitted, six-point-five metres (6.5m) Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boats, to be used by the security agencies to patrol the river bodies twenty-four, seven.
These boats will be deployed on Rivers Ankobrah, Prah, Birim and the Black Volta, and they will operate all day and all night, to rid these water bodies of any form of mining. Operation Halt II will continue to support these measures. We are grateful to the Ministry of Defence, and the military high command, led by its hardworking Chief of Defence Staff, Vice Admiral Seth Amoama, for their collaboration in this effort, and indeed, in several other initiatives of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
The fight against illegal mining must be national concern, and I call on every Ghanaian living everywhere, and particularly communities along the various river bodies, who bear the brunt of these illegalities, to be vigilant, and support us by reporting those involved in these activities.
It is our fervent hope that with your vigilance, and these Boats, supported by Operation Halt II, we can find a lasting solution to the pollution of our water bodies.
Nana Chairman, Hon. Ministers, Deputy Minister, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, let me reiterate, if I have not done so enough, that the Government of President Akufo-Addo, is not against small scale mining. What we are against, is any form of mining that pays no regard to the environment, that is done contrary to law and the established protocols, that threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of our citizens, and we will not hesitate in cracking the whip on those who engage in such illegalities.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources remains committed to the vision of the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to make Ghana the mining hub of Africa, by promoting an orderly, viable, sustainable and environmentally-sound small scale mining industry which is anchored on integrity, and which contributes, meaningfully, to the national economy. We will never relent on this effort, and God-willing, and with your support, we shall realise this goal.
I thank you for your attention.
