The Deputy Director of A Rocha Ghana, Daryl Bosu, has raised concerns over the effectiveness of the government’s Blue Water Guards initiative, describing its impact as limited despite its intended objectives.

The initiative was launched by the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, to help restore polluted water bodies affected by illegal mining activities.

As part of the fight against illegal mining (galamsey), the government introduced the Blue Water Guards, with thousands of personnel trained to provide round-the-clock monitoring and protection of rivers and other water resources across the country.

However, Mr Bosu, speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, said the initiative appears not to be yielding the expected results, adding that there is little visible improvement in the protection of water bodies since its rollout.

"We set up groups like Blue Water Guards and all of that; frankly, I am failing to see their impact when it comes to fighting galamsey," he said.

"I see critical resources being deployed to a group that could have been channelled to institutions like the Police, the central institutions at the Forestry Commission, the Minerals Commission, and actually the Police to ensure that this work is done," he added.

He urged a reassessment of the programme to ensure stronger enforcement and measurable impact in the fight against environmental degradation linked to galamsey activities.