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Acting Chief Justice, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, has called on national leaders to take decisive and far-reaching steps to end illegal small-scale mining, popularly known as galamsey, warning that it poses an existential threat to Ghana.
Delivering his remarks through Justice Hafisata Amaleboba at the opening of the 2025 Annual General Conference of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) in Wa on Monday, September 15, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie expressed concern that years of legal reforms have failed to stop the menace.
He noted that despite the repeal of the Small-Scale Gold Mining Law, PNDC Law 218 of 1989, and its replacement with the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), illegal mining has persisted and even worsened.
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Highlighting its impact, he warned that galamsey has fueled insecurity, with the influx of foreign miners linked to rising criminal activity in affected areas. He lamented that the scourge has brought “unspeakable death, pain, and disruption” to communities across the country.
“The measures we have employed over the years have been half-hearted and unable to solve this menace, which is a threat to the country’s survival,” he said.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie also called for the repeal of the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Regulation, 2022 (L.I. 2462), which permits mining in forest reserves, arguing that removing it would mark a critical step toward addressing the problem.
“It is a good place to start if we sincerely want to win the war against galamsey. The time to act is now, without any further delay,” he stressed.
Story By: Afia Ohenewaa Akyerem