Galamsey, elites and economic survival
A December 15, 2025 opinion piece in the Daily Graphic: ‘Beneath the surface.
Tales of galamsey from Ayanfuri’, is a full-page investigation into why areas of Ghana with known gold deposits attract numerous galamseyers even when they know it is highly environmentally damaging.
Ayanfuri, a significant mining town in the Upper Denkyira West District, Central Region, was the focus of the piece. Known for both legal large-scale gold mining by companies such as Perseus Mining and extensive galamsey, Ayanfuri has severe environmental pollution, notably of the Offin River, impacting residents’ quality of life and even, medium-term, of survival.
Controversial
Galamsey is a cause célèbre, a controversial issue attracting prolonged public attention. Centres such as Ayanfuri are the reason why.
Close to the regulated operations of Perseus Mining, hundreds of unregulated miners dig with shovels, metal detectors and mercury, seeking sika, the Akan term for gold.
The result is deforested hills, polluted streams and dangerous pits.
Why is galamsey egregious yet uncontrolled?
As the recent opinion piece noted: ‘Galamsey is more than an environmental crime. It is a struggle for survival, shaped by poverty, unemployment, and the lure of gold.’
Galamsey is a story of conflicting interests involving the government, mining companies, traditional leaders, and ordinary citizens.
Put another way, while it makes great environmental and developmental sense not to get involved in galamsey, the here-and-now concerns of survival in a difficult economic environment make it an easy choice for galamseyers.
As one noted in the Opinion article: “I know mining destroys the land, but I cannot sit at home with no work while my children are hungry.
Galamsey is what puts food on the table.”
There we have it: stark, immediate concerns of survival, including the right of children to be fed, trump environmental sustainability.
Elites and galamsey
The devastating spread of galamsey is identified by religious and health experts, who argue that the crisis is not merely an economic problem but also a profound moral and spiritual failing fuelling a public health disaster.
This conclusion emerged from a virtual environmental conference themed: Navigating the Challenges of Illegal Mining in Ghana: Impact on Individuals, Communities, Health and Policy, recently organised by IGER Africa.
Conference participants were reminded that it is not only the desperate and the poverty-stricken who benefit from the arduous, dirty and dangerous work of galamsey.
Ordinary citizens are a bottom-up pressure driving galamsey, while ‘government, mining companies [and] traditional leaders’ are top-down forces prolonging, spreading and exploiting galamsey for personal and corporate gain.
While small-time galamseyers incur the public wrath of societal leaders – both secular and religious – it is common knowledge that elites with the Mercedes-Benz’s and SUVs, designer clothes from Gucci, Chanel, Hermès, Dior and Prada, and mansions in Cantonments (known for embassies and luxury apartments) and East Legon (popular with expats and professionals for its amenities and proximity to business hubs) enjoy the lion’s share of galamsey’s illicit riches.
The price of gold hit all-time high in 2025, around $4,379 - $4,381 per ounce in October and holding strong near those levels in December due to geopolitical uncertainty, strong central bank buying, and a weaker US dollar.
The price is fluctuating around these record highs, with technical analysis suggesting it’s poised for potential further gains or consolidation, depending on economic data.
Church
Given such riches, exhortations to disengage with galamsey are ineffective.
Major religious institutions, including the Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Christian Council of Ghana, actively campaign against galamsey, defining it as a moral, social, and environmental crisis.
Among other measures, the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference (GCBC) in November 2024 publicly declared that it would not accept donations or funds derived from galamsey proceeds.
In addition, the Church has announced a plan to impose sanctions on members who persist in illegal mining activities after being warned, which could include the denial of Holy Communion.
Moreover, the Catholic Church has joined with many other religious bodies in repeatedly calling on the government to enforce laws decisively and hold those who finance galamsey accountable, regardless of their political or social standing.
The church has taken the lead in anti-galamsey rhetoric and calls to action to combat it. Will secular leaders follow suit and make further efforts to diminish galamsey?
The writer is an Emeritus Professor of Politics, London Metropolitan University, UK
