Former Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Professor Stephen Adei says that given the impact of illegal small-scale mining (Galamsey) activities, it has become extremely critical to nip the practice in the bud immediately. He makes the point that galamsey threatens almost all sectors of the economy, especially agriculture. "If we don't deal with galamsey, then we should forget about agriculture in the southern sector," he said on the Key Points on TV3 on Saturday, March 8.
Recently, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah revealed that 44 of Ghana's forest reserves are under serious attack by heavily armed illegal small-scale miners.
He says that the forest guards and rapid response team from the Forestry Commission are unable to tackle these illegal miners because they do not have the sophisticated weapons that the galamasyers possess.
Briefing Parliament on the state of Ghana's forests on Thursday, February 20, the Minister said "Ghana's forests continue to be under serious threats of deforestation and forest degradation due to factors known to all of us.
