Galamsey: Licensing System Is a Complex Maze Encouraging Illegality – Erastus Asare Donkor
Investigative journalist urges overhaul of Ghana’s mining regime to curb illegal operations
- Erastus Donkor says Ghana’s mining licensing system fuels galamsey.
- Calls for simpler, transparent licensing and alternative livelihoods.
- Urges strict no-mining zones and rapid environmental restoration.
JoyNews investigative journalist Erastus Asare Donkor has called on government and regulatory bodies to urgently reform Ghana’s mining licensing system, arguing that its current structure fuels the rise of illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Delivering the keynote address at the Kronti ne Akwamu Lecture on Thursday, November 27, under the theme “Galamsey: A Country’s Search for a Solution in Plain Sight,” Mr. Donkor described the licensing regime as a “complex maze” riddled with bureaucracy and corruption. According to him, the cumbersome process discourages genuine small-scale miners while creating fertile ground for illegal operators to flourish.
He revealed that many prospective miners spend years paying renewal fees and navigating endless paperwork, only for their concessions to be destroyed by illegal miners who face little resistance. Such conditions, he said, “force good people into bad choices,” making illegality seem like the only viable option.
Mr. Donkor stressed the need for a simpler, fair and transparent licensing process that removes excuses for illegality and ensures only deliberate offenders are punished.
He cautioned, however, that enforcement alone cannot solve galamsey. Any sustainable solution, he argued, must include alternative livelihood programmes such as skills training, eco-tourism, agriculture and entrepreneurship. Without these, efforts to end illegal mining will merely “push poverty from one pit to another.”
Mr. Donkor further called for the establishment of strict red zones around water bodies where mining should be completely prohibited, stressing that poverty must never be used to justify environmental destruction.
He warned against nurturing a dangerous “galamsey mentality” among the youth — the belief that mining is the only pathway to survival — noting that Ghana’s mineral resources are finite.
Beyond stopping illegal mining, he urged authorities to prioritise land reclamation and river desilting as part of the broader effort to reverse the extensive environmental damage caused by galamsey.
