Galamsey fight demands consensus – President Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has called for an impartial and non-partisan dialogue for the country to reach a consensus on a sustainable method of mining minerals.

President Akufo-Addo said there were things that could be discussed on partisan lines, but issues bordering on small-scale mining and the requirement to do away with illegalities in that sector should be beyond partisan politics.

“We cannot have one part of the political divide campaigning for galamsey in the bush and the other waging an official fight against galamsey in the open.”

He therefore urged the forum to insist that illegal small-scale mining and matters relating to it should be one of such issues requiring national effort.

Consultative dialogue

President Akufo-Addo made the call when he opened a two-day national consultative dialogue on small-scale mining to develop a blueprint to deal with galamsey and how to fashion best ways for small-scale mining in Accra.

The conference, which is on the theme: “Sustainable small-scale mining for national development”, is being attended by all ministers of Lands and Natural Resources in the Fourth Republic, all political parties, parliamentary select committees, mining industry players, faith-based organisations and civil society organisations.

The first roundtable discussion, which will look at the topic: “Experience, challenges, successes and future outlook for the small-scale mining sector”, is to be chaired by a Lands and Natural Resources Minister in the erstwhile Mahama administration, Mr Inusah Fuseini.

Candid

The President called for a frank national dialogue to fashion concrete policies to deal decisively with the menace of illegal mining and its attendant repercussions on the environment, lives and livelihoods.

He said the policies which should be arrived at on consensus would lead to the promotion of responsible, viable and environmentally sustainable small-scale mining that discarded the use of mercury, shanfan and excavators and the involvement of foreigners.

The President said it was crucial that deliberations at the consultative dialogue be candid and devoid of partisanship or narrow parochial interests.

He expressed the hope that in the end, they would be able to build a broad-based national consensus to stamp out the menace of illegal small-scale mining and see the need to support and grow responsible small-scale mining.

President Akufo-Addo at an exhibition at the National Consultative Dialogue on Small Scale Mining. On his left is Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources.  Picture: SAMUEL TEI ADANO

Support

President Akufo-Addo noted that the vision of what small-scale mining should be must have the support of the entire nation and urged the gathering to be bold and forthright in its deliberations.

“No subject or person should be above critique. Politicians, traditional authorities, policy makers, the media, so-called influential people should all not be beyond your scrutiny,” he stressed.

Touching on the menace, President Akufo-Addo noted that there was nothing wrong with mining, a sector that provided resources for national development and benefited families, adding, however, that it had become problematic and dangerous.

That, he said, was because the methods employed posed a danger to the land, water bodies and the very lives of the people.

“Mining becomes a danger to society when, after extracting the gold, diamond or other stones and minerals, the land is left degraded and poisoned with toxic materials, water bodies are turned into entities that can no longer support life and plants and fish cannot survive in our rivers,” he explained.

He bemoaned the fact that Ghana’s beautiful and majestic rivers and streams, as well as thick forests, could not be celebrated again due to unacceptable mining and logging practices that had laid them to waste.

Responsibility, progress

The President said the government was accountable for the stewardship of all other aspects of national life, including mining, and stressed his determination to enforce the laws on illegal mining, no matter who were involved, but would not base his actions on hearsay or mere allegations.

President Akufo-Addo, who waged a war against illegal mining in his first term after the media had highlighted its dire impact on the environment and water bodies, said the government wanted to build on the modest progress made in his first term, learn from the shortcomings and receive productive inputs from the forum for purposes of enhancing the regulation of the sector.

He expressed the hope that the maiden dialogue would build a national consensus around a national policy on small-scale mining that promoted a responsible, viable, environmentally sustainable small-scale mining industry.

Questions

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, said the forum was expected to provide answers to questions of how to effectively regulate the industry and how to deal with the financiers of illegal small-scale miners who put young men into mining pits, while they received the proceeds of such dangerous and criminal enterprises in the comfort of their homes.

The minister said it would also look at ways to fashion alternative livelihoods for those who would inevitably fall out of the cracks, what could be learnt from international best standards and what kind of biting enforcement regime was required.

Mr Jinapor said the dialogue would also come up with a blueprint on how to name, shame and punish politicians, chiefs, religious leaders, the elite and rich people who influenced and promoted criminal cartels in the industry.