The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has revealed that 55 small-scale mining licences issued during transitional period have been revoked as part of the government’s ongoing efforts to combat illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on Wednesday, July 23, the Minister explained that the revocations followed the discovery of several irregularities during a recent audit of mining licences across the country.
“In the fight against galamsey, it must be noted that 55 small scale mining licenses issued during the transitional period were revoked at the beginning of the year. Additionally 907 out the 1200 small scale mining licenses are now under review for possible revocation due to irregularities identify by the small scale mining review committee.”
He emphasized that these actions form part of the government’s broader initiative to sanitize Ghana’s mining sector, restore environmental integrity, and promote sustainable mining practices.
Mr. Buah also noted that similar exercise is currently underway for large scale mining to ensure sustainability.
“A similar exercise is ongoing to review large scale mining licenses to ensure compliance. These measures are all aimed at sanitizing the mining sector to ensure transparency and sustainability.”
Mr. Buah had earlier issued a two-week ultimatum to the holders of 962 small-scale mining licences to rectify anomalies or risk having their permits permanently revoked.
The directive was based on findings from a comprehensive review conducted by a special committee tasked with assessing the validity and compliance status of all existing small-scale mining licences.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
