Akonta Mining licence revoked

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has directed the Minerals Commission to immediately revoke the mining lease of Akonta Mining Company Ltd, a mining entity linked to the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

This follows the alleged discovery that the company and its associates were neck-deep in illegal mining activities in the Samreboi enclave of the Western North Region, in contravention of the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995).

Mr Buah gave the directive after an intelligence-led raid on six mining sites by the security agencies and Forestry Commission guards, which led to the arrest of 51 illegal miners and the confiscation of 30 excavators and other equipment in the operations at those sites.

Describing the move as “a significant breakthrough” in the fight against illegal mining, commonly called galamsey, the minister said the government was on the verge of breaking the spine of a criminal syndicate involving some Minerals Commission officials, Forestry Commission staff and security officers who allegedly had colluded with the company to perpetrate the environmental crime.

At a press briefing in Accra yesterday, the minister directed the Forestry Commission to interdict some officers of the commission allegedly found to have aided the illegal miners to destroy the forest reserves with impunity, pending further investigation and prosecution.

Additionally, Mr Buah ordered an urgent investigation into the activities of the Inspectorate Division of the Minerals Commission to ascertain the circumstances under which illegal mining was thriving under their watch.

“The security agencies have been notified to investigate security officers who have had dealings with Akonta Mining in this particular forest reserve,” he said. 

The illegality

The minister said although Akonta Mining Company Ltd was a company legally registered and granted a government lease to mine responsibly off-reserve outside the forest, the activities of the mining entity were found to be in gross violation of the requirements of the lease.

He added that the company did not possess an entry permit into the forest reserve of the Samreboi enclave of the Western North Region, with investigations revealing that Akonta Mining had flagrantly abused its lease.

"This company has not only trespassed into protected reserves but has become a criminal syndicate, selling access to the Aboi Forest Reserve to illegal miners for a staggering GH¢300,000 per concession.

Additionally, he said, it had been established that the illegal miners operated under Akonta Mining Ltd's protection, leading to the devastation of River Tano and surrounding forests with impunity.

"They have encroached on compartments 49 and 121 of the Tano Nimri Forest Reserve," he said.

Details

Mr Buah said an undercover team that was deployed to the area uncovered a "well-oiled machinery of destruction".

He said a representative of Akonta Mining Ltd, identified as Mr Ayisi, was the liaison with the dealings at the illegal mining sites, serving as the gatekeeper, negotiating fees and granting access to the restricted areas.

He added that as part of the modus operandi of the cartel, the concessions were then subleased to individuals "such as one Mr Henry and another individual identified as Shark", whose responsibility was to oversee the devastation of the Aboi Forest Reserve and the Tano River in the name of mining.

"As part of the agreement between Akonta Mining and the illegal miners, weekly royalties of 250 grammes of gold are to be paid to the company, lining the pockets of Akonta’s collaborators," the minister added. 

Collusion

Mr Buah said another regrettable part of the syndicate that was exposed by the investigative team was that the criminal enterprise thrived because of the active collusion and connivance of some forestry officers and some security personnel.

"Here is how it works: part of the GH¢300,000 fee goes to Akonta Mining, a portion goes to Mr Henry, Shark, and their cohorts, and another portion goes to the forestry and security officials, according to investigators.

"These officers take a cut as a service charge in exchange for protection and tip-offs in the event of an impending raid," he explained.

The minister added that the illegal miners continued to destroy the forest reserves with impunity because they were emboldened that they were operating under the cover of the lease of Akonta Mining Company Ltd.

The raid

Mr Buah explained that armed with reliable information about the illegality, an intelligence-led operation led by the Ghana Police Service and the Forestry Commission was carried out on Friday, April 17, 2025, on the six illegal mining sites linked to the company.

He explained that the operation in Compartment 49, which began at 5 a.m. and lasted 12 hours, resulted in the arrest of 51 people: eight Chinese and 43 Ghanaians, including four Ghanaian women.

He said the raid also led to the seizure of 30 excavators, two pump-action guns loaded with five and two rounds of BB cartridges each; one single-barrelled gun; two Toyota Hilux pickups, one Toyota RAV4, four motorbikes, and a cache of mining equipment.

"All suspects have been transported to Accra, in custody, pending prosecution," he added. 
 

No retreat 

Mr Buah stated that to the extent that Akonta Mining did not have a lease to mine in the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve, while its mining activities in the forest were illegal and criminal, the government would stop at nothing to bring the company to book.

"This is a warning to all large-scale mining concession holders hiding behind legal leases to fund the destruction of our forests and river bodies.

We know some of your schemes; we are coming after you," he stressed. 

He said the government would not stop until galamsey was completely uprooted.

"We will not stop until our waters run blue; we will not stop until our forests are turned green; we will not stop until the soul of our country is healed; we will not stop until every financier, every enabler, the real architects of this destruction, face the full rigours of the law," he stressed.

The minister added that "we will name, shame and prosecute them publicly".