Sustaining Galamsey Fight: Lands Ministry To Track Excavators – Control Room Ready

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All excavators in mining concessions will be tracked electronically as part of major measures to clamp down on illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has disclosed.

Already, he said, the Minerals Commission had set up a control room for the effective rollout of the initiative and was working to complete the procurement of the tracking devices in a couple of months.

Speaking at the Meet-the-Press series in Accra yesterday, the minister said the decision to deploy the tracking devices was to enforce the Minerals and Mining (Mineral Operations – Tracking of Earthmoving and Mining Equipment) Regulations, 2020 (L.I. 2404) that empowered the commission to track all earthmoving machines and equipment used in mining operations.

“The control room will be ready for use next month. The tracking devices are being procured, and in a couple of months, the initiative will be fully rolled out,” he said.

Enforcement

Mr Jinapor, who is also the Member of Parliament for Damongo, explained that as part of measures to fight galamsey, the ministries of Lands and Natural Resources, Transport and National Security had worked together to ensure that importers of all earthmoving equipment obtained permits before bringing the equipment into the country.

“The arrangement is such that if you are in the mining sector and you want to import an excavator for use in mining, you will need a permit from the Transport Minister; but before he gives you the permit, he will seek the view of the Lands and Natural Resources Minister,” he said.

He said it was in a bid to further tighten the knot that the trackers were being procured to be fixed on excavators.

Mr Jinapor stressed that the government would continue to implement measures and enforce mining regulations to bring sanity to the small-scale mining (SSM) sector.

He said processes were underway to deploy fi ve patrol boats to help weed out illegal mining activities on the Pra, Birim, Black Volta and other rivers.

Community mining

The minister said the priority of his ministry was to support the Minerals Commission to launch more community mining schemes (CMSs) to help regularise and sanitize the SSM sector.

Mr Jinapor said 20 of such CMSs were rolled out in 14 mining districts across the country in 2021, while 14 had so far been launched this year.

“In the coming weeks, we will be rolling out more of the schemes in Osino in the Fanteakwa South District in the Eastern Region; Kenyasi in the Asutifi South municipality in the Ahafo Region; Dunkwa in the Upper Denkyira East Municipality in the Central Region; Manso Nkwanta and Mosiaso in the Amansie West District, Akrofuom in the Akrofuom District and Bekwai in the Bekwai Municipality, all in the Ashanti Region; Atronsu in the Bibiani Anhwianso Bekwai municipality, Nsuaem in the Tarkwa Nsuaem municipality, Bompieso in the Prestea-Huni Valley municipality, and Afransie in the Wassa Amenfi East municipality, all in the Western Region,” he said.

By: graphic.com.gh