The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the December 2024 elections, John Dramani Mahama, has underscored the dire consequences of illegal mining activities, commonly known as "galamsey."

He has thus proposed the establishment of a national joint action team on mining and forestry to combat this issue should he win the December 7 presidential elections.

Speaking at the 3rd Annual Transformational Dialogue on Small-scale Mining at the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) in Sunyani, Mr Mahama expressed deep concern over the extensive damage caused by illegal mining, emphasising the need for collaborative efforts and decisive actions to address the challenges posed by this activity.

Mr Mahama highlighted the severe environmental degradation resulting from galamsey, stressing that it has left Ghana with significant scars that demand urgent attention and intervention. 

He lamented that despite the widespread devastation, only a select few are reaping the benefits, calling for a collective effort to address this inequality and safeguard the nation's natural resources.

In his address, Mr Mahama pledged to formulate a new vision for the mining sector aimed at reclaiming degraded lands, restoring environmental integrity, and ensuring equitable distribution of benefits to the nation as a whole. 

The former President emphasised the importance of reclaiming the damaged lands and harnessing the potential of Ghana's natural environment for sustainable development.

At the same time, we cannot overlook the years of galamsey activities that have left our country with serious legacy scars. We propose some initiatives to restore degraded lands, rehabilitate impacted forests, and clean our polluted water bodies. These initiatives will restore the environment and create thousands of jobs in the affected mining communities.

“We will establish a National Joint Action Team on Mining and Forestry, a collaboration between the Forestry Commission, the Private Sector and SSM operators to rehabilitate impacted forests. This initiative will also create thousands of jobs in the affected mining communities," he said.

Additionally, Mr Mahama announced plans to launch an #Atree4life initiative in mining communities, aimed at promoting tree planting among the youth. 

This initiative seeks to encourage young people to engage in the cultivation of economically viable trees as a means to mitigate the environmental destruction caused by illegal mining activities.

“A Galamsey Rehabilitation Initiative will work to convert impacted lands into commercial crop production zones, such as palm, shea nut, cocoa and rubber plantations. This will be funded through special fees from the Minerals Commission, contributions by the SSM Association, and interested plantation companies."

“I will launch a #Atree4life project through which re-afforestation by young people in mining areas will become an economically engaging activity. They will supervise the growth of these economically viable tree crops." he added.