President John Mahama has signaled a radical shift in Ghana’s fight against illegal mining, vowing to move past low-level arrests to dismantle the powerful networks financing the destruction of the nation’s environment.
Delivering his State of the Nation Address (SONA) to Parliament on Friday, February 27, 2026, the President categorized illegal mining—locally known as galamsey—as a “grave threat” to national security, public health, and the country’s water bodies.
In a candid assessment of previous enforcement efforts, President Mahama admitted that the law has historically failed to reach those truly in control.
”Mr. Speaker, in all these Galamsey operations, there are big fish who never get caught,” the President declared.
President John Dramani Mahama, addressing Parliament during 2026 SONA
While noting that prosecutions have intensified, he criticized past approaches for being reactive rather than strategic, often penalizing “little fish” while the orchestrators remained untouched.
To bridge this gap, the President announced the deployment of specialized prosecutorial teams.
These units are not merely focused on arrests but are designed to dismantle the economic backbone of the trade.
Their specific mandate includes fast-tracking cases, reducing the legal delays that often allow offenders to slip away.
The President revealed that the government has mapped 140 communities specifically towns and villages identified as high-intensity zones for galamsey activity.
These areas will see a heightened presence of enforcement and specialized legal oversight.
By targeting the “big fish,” the administration hopes to finally provide a lasting solution to the pollution of forest reserves and river bodies that has plagued Ghana for decades.
By 1960news.com
