Ghana must adopt more aggressive measures, including deploying security forces if necessary, to combat illegal mining, the president of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Most Rev Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, said on Thursday.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Wednesday (29 April), Gyamfi described galamsey as a growing national crisis that threatens livelihoods and environmental sustainability.
“The leadership of the country must do something more radical… what is being done now is not enough,” he said.
He likened the situation to the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, when authorities mobilised extensive resources to contain the threat.
“We should treat this as a state of emergency… bring together all resources—military, police, economic—to address it,” he said.
While acknowledging ongoing efforts by authorities, Gyamfi warned that incremental progress was being outpaced by the scale of destruction.
“You may reduce it by 10 percent, but it increases by 20 percent,” he said.
He added that public education campaigns by churches and civil society, while important, are insufficient on their own to curb illegal mining, as many participants see it as a means of survival.
“Persuasion is not enough… the state must act decisively to stop people from destroying the nation,” he said.
Gyamfi also stressed that tackling galamsey requires both moral guidance and firm enforcement, warning that failure to act decisively could have long-term consequences for Ghana’s environment and economy.
