The Director of Research at the Centre for Climate Change and Food Security, Sulemana Issifu, is advocating for leadership to set aside politics and focus on finding solutions to end illegal mining activities.

According to him, the menace, commonly known as galamsey, not only poses risks to public health but also has the potential to cause healthcare challenges for future generations.

Speaking on JoyNews' The Pulse on Wednesday he said “Not only are we denying ourselves the ability to live, but we are also compromising the existence of the next generation so when it comes to intergenerational equity, we have failed big time and there is no time for us to play around so far as galamsey is concerned.”

He explained that some children born to individuals living in areas dominated by galamsey activities have already been born without genitalia and other vital organs.

Mr Issifu stressed that it is high time for leadership to take concrete steps to address this menace, rather than waiting for the country to face an epidemic.

He said that the government seems unconcerned because they assume the health hazards associated with galamsey are limited to mining sites.

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However, with the increasing pollution of water sources, he warned that soon the country might have to import bottled water.

He questioned whether officials, who may be able to afford bottled water, could afford to use it for bathing.

The Director of Research also raised concerns about what would happen to members of their families who are less privileged.