By Omotayo Edubi
The President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo has thrown weight behind the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in the fight against illegalities in the natural resources sector, particularly the fight against illegal Mining and also support the Green Ghana Project.
Addressing Ghanaians and the World, during his 2022 State of the Nations Address (SONA) on Wednesday, the President stressed “if ever, the support of all citizens was required to make something work, it is in the battle to end illegal mining and restore our lands and waterbodies back to health.”
He said in the cause of this fight, government has through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, declared river bodies and forest reserves as Red Zones for mining.
He stated that government has also suspended the issuance of all prospecting exploration licences for Minerals in forest reserves and launched Operation Halt II to help rid water bodies and forest reserves of illegal miners.
Still on illegal mining, he mentioned that the government has revamped the Community Mining Scheme (CMS) as a more sustainable source of livelihood to replace illegal mining.
President Akufo-Addo indicated that all these initiatives are important contributors to the fight against illegal Mining but noted that what the country needs above all is the buy-in of all citizens in the fight.
“What we need above all is the buy-in of all citizens to recognise that the degradation caused to the lands and water bodies by the illegal mining practices affect each one of us and we all should take an interest to stop those involved.”
The President on behalf of the nation extended his condolences to the bereaved families and victims of the Appiatse explosion while commending the public for their massive response to the disaster.
He said government responded swiftly in the immediate aftermath of the incident by dispatching a high power delegation to Appiatse, led by the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia and supported by the Sector Minister, Samuel A. Jinapor.
He mentioned that the Appiatse Support Fund is also an immediate action by government to spearhead the building of a decent, green and sustainable community to enable victims of the incident get back on their feet and rebuild their lives.
On the Forestry sector, the President applauded the Ministry and Ghanaians for having made last year’s Green Ghana Project a success and beckoned all to support this year’s target of planting 20 million trees.
Touching on the Lands sector, the President applauded the Ministry’s efforts in securing some lands at Kwabenya to build a Huge Barracks complex which he said will soon be completed to boost the morale of the police and security service.
