Shelter Belt Forest Reserve Recovery Marks Significant Win in Ghana’s Fight Against Illegal Mining
The NDC government has achieved a significant milestone in its fight against illegal mining in the country, successfully reclaiming the Shelter Belt forest reserve, the largest of nine reserves that had been overrun by illegal miners for nearly a decade.
This accomplishment was made possible through a collaborative effort with security services, marking a crucial step towards combating the illicit activity.
According to Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, 44 out of Ghana’s 288 forest reserves are currently under severe threat from illegal mining operations. Nine of these reserves had been completely taken over by illegal miners, who wield sophisticated weapons, making it challenging for the Forest Commission to maintain control.
The Minister emphasized the government’s commitment to reclaiming lost forest reserves and restoring polluted water bodies.
“We talked about the 44 forest reserves that have been destroyed, but we won’t stop there. We will ensure the forests are recovered through afforestation under the
‘Tree for Life’ initiative,” he stated. “I am proud to say that, with the help of the security forces and housing sector, we have recovered the largest forestry reserve. We are taking things one step at a time and will work towards turning our waters blue again.”
Furthermore, the Minister disclosed plans to restructure the licensing system for mining, eliminating unclear classifications such as small-scale and medium-scale mining.
“We are going with policies to restructure how we give licences. There is nothing called small-scale, or medium-scale mining, we are going to restructure licensing and decentralized licensing,” he added.
Source: Phalonzy