The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) will support the reclamation of three forest reserves affected by illegal mining next year as part of efforts to restore degraded landscapes, its Chief Executive Officer, Sammy Gyamfi, has disclosed.

Mr Gyamfi said GoldBod had already commenced supporting reclamation activities in some affected areas, including the Tano Nimri Forest Reserve, while Apaprama was also expected to benefit from the intervention.

He explained that the initiative was being undertaken despite GoldBod not being responsible for the destruction of the forest reserves, stressing that the institution had a responsibility to contribute to the broader national effort to combat the environmental consequences of illegal mining.

Speaking during a Space conversation on X on Sunday, August 9, Mr Gyamfi said, “We are reclaiming it. And next year, we are taking up three devastated forest reserves because the President is so passionate about it; it is dear to his heart, and says GoldBod, you need to help in this fight.”

He said GoldBod’s environmental interventions were being pursued alongside efforts to formalise small-scale mining, improve traceability and promote responsible mining practices.

“The solving of environmental concerns while at the same time dealing with the economic need that the gold must meet are not mutually exclusive; it goes hand in hand,” he said.

Mr Gyamfi also disclosed that GoldBod had provided GH¢5 million and five pickup vehicles to the National Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (NAIMOS) to support its enforcement operations.

He added that the Board had budgeted for 10 speedboats to strengthen efforts to tackle illegal mining on water bodies, noting that the boats had already been ordered and were being manufactured.

The GoldBod CEO urged Ghanaians to give the interventions time to deliver results, arguing that the country’s illegal mining crisis had developed over several years and could not be resolved overnight.

He said a combination of formalisation, enforcement, reclamation and gold traceability would be necessary to reduce the environmental damage caused by illegal mining while ensuring that Ghana derives maximum economic value from its gold resources.