The Acting Executive Director of the Forest Services Division of the Forestry Commission, Lydia Opoku, has called on local communities and traditional leaders to provide urgent protection and support for forest guards combating illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.
Speaking to journalists in Kumasi on Thursday, May 8, following a tour of several illegal mining sites, Opoku stressed the increasing danger faced by forestry officials, who often confront heavily armed thugs protecting illegal miners operating within forest reserves.
“The miners are being protected by armed tasks and the sophisticated machines they are holding, we cannot match them. So, we are pleading with the communities, chiefs, to assist to protect the Forestry Commission to protect the forest,” she said.
Opoku emphasized that the support of chiefs and residents, particularly in mining-affected areas, is essential for tackling the growing threat of galamsey, which continues to degrade Ghana’s forest reserves and pollute water bodies.
Meanwhile, as part of the government’s broader strategy to fight illegal mining, 453 personnel under the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ Blue Water Initiative have completed a four-week intensive training program at the Ghana Navy Forward Base in Ezilibo, in the Jomoro District of the Western Region.
The trained personnel are expected to be deployed within a week to support the Ghana Navy in protecting the nation’s major rivers from illegal mining operations.
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