The number of fatalities recorded in Ghana’s mining industry dropped significantly in 2025, falling from seven deaths in 2024 to three, representing a decline of more than 57 per cent.

The Ghana Chamber of Mines attributed the improvement to increased attention to workplace safety, including investments in employee training, emergency preparedness, leadership and risk management.

The Chamber, however, said the reduction must not lead to complacency as the industry continues to pursue its target of eliminating workplace deaths.

Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Dr Kenneth Ashigbey, disclosed the figures at the Zone One Inter-Mines First Aid and Safety Competition at Akoon, held under the theme, “Safety first, safety always.”

“We should acknowledge this progress, but we must never allow progress to become complacent. Three deaths are too many,” he said.

Although fatalities declined, the industry recorded 34 serious accidents and 210 first aid cases in 2025. Dr Ashigbey therefore urged mining companies to deepen efforts in hazard identification, behavioural safety, risk management and emergency response, while strengthening mechanisms for learning from workplace incidents.

“Our destination therefore remains clear: zero fatalities and zero harm,” he said, stressing the need for mining companies to give equal attention to the safety of contractors and permanent employees.

He also called for stronger safety systems across the industry, noting that risks at mining sites do not discriminate between workers employed directly by mining companies and those engaged as contractors.

Mine Manager of Gold Fields Ghana’s Tarkwa Mine, Dr Catherine Kuupol Kuutor, said achieving safer workplaces required workers to take personal responsibility for their actions rather than comply with safety measures only when they were being supervised.

“We have to do the right thing, not because we are being monitored, but because lives depend on it,” she said.

Dr Kuutor said Gold Fields had extended its safety initiatives beyond its mining operations by working with host communities, emergency services, security agencies and community leaders to improve preparedness and awareness.

She said responsible mining should be measured not only by production figures but also by the lives protected and development achieved in mining communities.

Meanwhile, Vice Chancellor of the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Prof. Bernard Kumi-Boateng, announced plans to introduce an inter-faculty first aid competition at the university from the next academic year.

He said participation would be compulsory for all students as part of efforts to strengthen practical safety skills.

Heath Goldfields Community won the Zone One competition with 98 points, narrowly beating Ghana Manganese Company Limited Community, which scored 97.5 points.

Asante Gold Corporation placed third with 96.5 points, while Gold Fields Ghana Limited, Tarkwa Mine, and AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Mine placed fourth and fifth with 91 and 81.5 points respectively.