The Water Citizens Network in collaboration with Revenue Mobilisation Africa has called for systemic change to address structural causes of the alarming environmental and social crisis of illegal and unregulated small-scale mining activities, nicknamed galamsey.
“For decades, we have witnessed a pattern of exploitation that has left communities dispossessed, lands degraded, and rivers poisoned.
“The galamsey crisis is the culmination of unchecked greed, fueled by both international mining corporations and powerful local interests who extract Ghana’s gold while returning little, if anything, to those affected,” they stated.
This was in a joint statement read by Mr. Leonard Shang-Quartey, Coordinator Africa Water Justice Network at the Africa Water Week 2024 – Ghana partners press engagement on galamsey in Accra.
The statement said: “To deal with the galamsey crisis, we must tackle the underlying structural issues, and this requires a multi-faceted approach that address the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of the problem.”
It therefore recommended the following as a new path forward to address the systemic structural issues.
The statement said economically the government must invest in sustainable industries to provide viable employment for young people, particularly in rural areas and that this should include agro-processing, renewable energy projects, and eco-tourism.
It should implement strict policies requiring mining companies to source materials and labour locally, creating jobs and reinvesting profits into local economies.
That, the government must enforce policies that prevent illicit financial flows and ensure mining companies pay fair taxes, and the funds should be allocated to social programmes, education, and infrastructure in mining-affected areas.
On the environmental front, the statement urged the government to enforce environmental laws rigorously, holding mining companies accountable for pollution and land degradation and that penalties should be substantial enough to deter environmental violations.
Mining companies, the statement said, should be mandated to clean up polluted rivers and degraded lands and that this should include reforestation programmes, soil rehabilitation, and community-based conservation projects.
It said local communities must be involved in the management of natural resources, enabling them to oversee and protect their lands and water sources.
The statement said the State must ensure full transparency in mining contracts, with all details publicly available, and to recognize and protect the rights of communities to their lands, preventing forced displacement and ensuring fair compensation where displacement was unavoidable.
It stated that water privatization must be rejected to guarantee that access to clean water remains a fundamental right for all Ghanaians, adding that water resources must be managed publicly and sustainably, prioritizing community needs over corporate profits.
The statement said the galamsey crisis was a tragic reminder of the price of neoliberal exploitation and the abandonment of community welfare for corporate gain.
“We cannot continue on this path, where profit trumps the preservation of our environment and the well-being of our people. The solution lies in addressing the systemic injustices that drive this crisis, empowering communities, and creating a sustainable and inclusive economy,” it said.
GNA