“This isn’t a disaster however a combat for our nation’s soul,” Brownson Adatsi, the lead convener for the Free The Residents Motion, mentioned, studying out a petition within the capital, Accra. “Our youngsters’s future is at stake, and we can not, and won’t stand by whereas our nation is ravaged by greed and negligence.”
Gold is a mainstay of the Ghanaian economic system, accounting for practically half of exports in 2023, in response to central financial institution knowledge. Massive-scale miners resembling Newmont Corp. and Gold Fields Ltd. have to stick to strict environmental guidelines, however a thriving artisanal and small-scale mining business is much less regulated. Throughout the small-mining area, authorities concede that numerous mines function illegally, which suggests there’s no oversight over their actions.
Often known as ‘galamsey’, a colloquialism originating from the phrase “collect them and promote,” unlawful mining has been spreading with impunity, in response to activists.
Unions are additionally placing strain on the federal government to behave, with simply two months left earlier than Dec. 7 presidential elections.
The incumbent, Nana Akufo-Addo, met with the nation’s largest labor union, Trades Union Congress, Thursday, the presidency mentioned in an announcement. The closed-door assembly got here after the union introduced it will be embarking on an indefinite strike from Oct. 10 to demand a ban on all types of small-scale gold mining. A spokesman for the union couldn’t instantly be reached for remark in regards to the end result of that assembly Friday.
Artisanal and small-scale mining sector, formally accounts for a couple of third of Ghana’s gold manufacturing, however not all of it’s unlawful.
For a lot of, ‘artisanal and small-scale’ nonetheless conjures pictures of individuals eking out a dwelling utilizing rudimentary instruments, like chisels to interrupt ore or pans to scoop up gold-bearing sediments. However there’s been an elevated use of huge excavation equipment and dredging gear. A few of these machines are used close to rivers and forests – and even inside them – and there’s no effort made to rehabilitate mining websites after excavation when operations are unlawful. That’s left soils and rivers polluted, inflicting illness and water shortages.
“There’s no small-scale mining anymore,” one of many placards learn.
(By Yinka Ibukun)