Members of the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners are demanding that the government returns excavators and tools taken from licensed sites by security forces. According to them, these seizures have become common in areas where miners are operating with legal permits.
At a press conference held in Kumasi, the association’s spokesperson, Abdul Razak Alhassan, expressed serious concern about the conduct of some security personnel who reportedly storm legal concessions with the support of powerful figures and take machines without due process. He alleged that in some cases, money is also demanded before the operators are allowed to continue their work.
This issue, he said, is not isolated to one region but has been occurring in parts of Ashanti, Eastern, Western, Western North, Savannah, and the Upper East. The association believes these actions are undermining the government’s own campaign to clean up and support responsible small-scale mining.
GNASSM emphasized that it has always backed national efforts to stop illegal mining, especially around sensitive zones like forest areas and water bodies. They pointed out that the small-scale mining industry has the potential to boost employment and local gold production, but needs consistent support and protection to thrive.
The group wants the government to empower the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operation Secretariat to coordinate enforcement activities and make sure legal miners are not wrongly targeted. They also called for protocols that guide how police interact with miners to avoid abuse.
As part of long-term reforms, GNASSM said it is ready to help transform informal miners into properly registered businesses, and even assist with reversing past environmental damage if given the authority to do so.
Finally, they urged that officers involved in anti-mining operations be properly educated on mining laws to prevent future confrontations and ensure that legal miners are treated fairly across the country.
