Lands Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has today 17 March 2025 launched the Blue Water Initiative, an initiative part of the broader ‘Reset Ghana Agenda’.
The Blue Water Initiative aims to train 2,000 personnel across the country to monitor river health, identify illegal mining activities, and collaborate with local communities and traditional authorities to fight galamseyers destroying Ghana’s river bodies.
Reports suggest an initial 460 river guards to protect Ghana’s water bodies from illegal mining.
He however revealed that 2,000 guards will be deployed nationwide soon, intensifying efforts to combat environmental degradation.
Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah at the event stated immediate action is needed. “Illegal mining is not just an environmental issue, it is a national crisis. We must act now,” he highlighted.
Ghana has over the years seen multiple anti-galamsey efforts in the past, many of which have failed due to corruption and weak enforcement.
However, the Lands Minister believes involving the local residents will help deal with the corruption and weak enforcement.
“The difference this time is that we are putting our own people in charge of their own future,” Minister Buah asserts.
Meanwhile, An illegal mining pit has claimed the lives of three children in the Eastern region.
According to reports, the Galamsey Pit claimed the lives of three children at different locations in the Eastern region.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Rita Akosua Adjei Awatey visited Abompe, a community in the Fanteakwa South District, last Wednesday, where two children tragically lost their lives in a mining pit.
Just two days earlier, she had been in Akwatia, where a 14-year-old boy reportedly drowned while swimming in a galamsey pit.
She expressed her condolences to the grieving families and also provided financial assistance to support them during this difficult time.
Meanwhile, the Mahama government has intensified its fight against illegal mining with the arrest of Eleven (11) people, made up of three Chinese men and eight Ghanaians have been arrested by the Forestry Commission for mining illegally in Tano Anwia Forest Reserve in the Western Region.
Watch the video below:
Lands Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has launched the Blue Water Initiative, deploying an initial 460 river guards to protect Ghana’s water bodies from illegal mining.
He however revealed that, 2,000 guards will be deployed nationwide soon, intensifying efforts to combat… pic.twitter.com/3R9E676vTI
— SIKAOFFICIAL🦍 (@SIKAOFFICIAL1) March 17, 2025
