The government has revoked all small-scale mining licences issued after December 7, 2024, following recommendations from a technical committee jointly established by the Ministries of Lands and Natural Resources and Environment, Science, and Technology.
At a press briefing on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, Lands Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah assured that the government would fully implement the committee’s recommendations, emphasizing that special attention would be paid to the findings.
Among the key recommendations of the committee is the revocation of all mining licences granted after the 2024 elections.
The committee also called for a complete overhaul of the Community Mining Scheme and the decentralization of mining licence issuance. Additionally, it proposed the repeal of L.I. 2462, which grants the President the power to authorize mining in forest reserves.
Commending the committee for its work, Buah stated that the report would serve as a blueprint for tackling illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.
He emphasized that the findings provide the necessary information to take decisive action in the small-scale mining sector and reiterated the government’s stance on revoking all licences issued since December 7, 2024.
He further revealed that the Community Mining Scheme would be disbanded and replaced with Small-Scale Cooperatives that genuinely serve the interests of local communities.
Minister of Environment, Science, and Technology, Ibrahim Murtala Muhammad, described the fight against galamsey as a moral battle for the protection of Ghanaian lives. He warned that illegal mining is an act of environmental terrorism and stressed that even members of the NDC found culpable would not be spared from punitive actions.
He assured that relevant ministries and stakeholders would work together to ensure lasting solutions to illegal mining in Ghana.
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