The Government reclaimed 1,335 acres of land degraded by illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, in 2025 as part of its ongoing efforts to restore the country's damaged landscapes and promote environmental sustainability.

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, disclosed this while addressing the Government Accountability Series in Accra on Wednesday, July 15, where he outlined progress made in the fight against illegal mining and the rehabilitation of degraded lands.

Mr Buah said the reclamation exercise was undertaken in the Ashanti Region through a strategic partnership between the Government and the private sector, describing the collaboration as a key component of efforts to reverse the environmental destruction caused by illegal mining.

He acknowledged the enormity of the challenge facing the country, noting that thousands of hectares of land have been devastated by years of unregulated mining activities, making reclamation a national priority that requires the support of multiple stakeholders.

"The Ministry, working with the private sector, has embarked on an aggressive strategy to reclaim degraded mining areas and transform them into ecological zones," the Minister said.

"The last time we were here, we talked about how huge that responsibility is in terms of how much we have to reclaim on this destroyed land. I can tell you that just last year we reclaimed 1,335 acres of degraded land, and this was done in the Ashanti Region."

Mr Buah revealed that the Government has secured additional commitments from private sector partners to expand the reclamation programme and accelerate the restoration of landscapes destroyed by illegal mining.

According to him, the Ministry is targeting the reclamation of a further 1,500 acres of degraded land in 2026 through private sector support.

He explained that this initiative would complement Government-led reclamation projects covering 960 acres in selected parts of the country, significantly increasing the overall scale of restoration efforts.

"We have gotten commitment from the private sector to undertake more reclamation, and we are targeting another 1,500 acres of reclamation this year. This is in addition to the government-owned reclamation effort of 960 acres in selected areas, so we hope to improve those numbers," he stated.

The Minister stressed that reclaiming degraded lands remains a critical pillar of the Government's broader strategy to address the environmental consequences of illegal mining, restore biodiversity and return damaged ecosystems to productive use.

He noted that rehabilitated lands would be transformed into ecological zones capable of supporting vegetation, improving soil quality and contributing to climate resilience, while reducing the long-term environmental impacts of galamsey.

Mr Buah reiterated the Government's commitment to working closely with private sector organisations and other stakeholders to scale up reclamation activities across the country, emphasising that restoring degraded mining areas is essential to safeguarding Ghana's natural resources for future generations.

He expressed optimism that the combined efforts of Government and its partners would accelerate environmental recovery and strengthen the country's fight against illegal mining through sustained restoration of degraded landscapes.