President of Policy Think Tank, Imani Africa, has joined calls for the Lands and Natural Resources minister to furnish Ghanaians with information on the forest reserves taken over from illegal miners.
Lands and Natural Resources Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, at a press conference on March 19, 2025, announced that the government has taken over 7 forest reserves in which illegal mining was taking place.
“I’m proud to tell you, with the cooperation of the security agencies and the military, we have taken back seven of these nine forests, and we are working very hard to ensure that the remaining two are fully reclaimed,” the minister stated.
The Minister’s claim has been brought under scrutiny with calls on him to name the forest reserves which have been salvaged from illegal miners.
Franklin Cudjoe in a post shared via social media said “Government says it has taken over 7 forest reserves from illegal miners. Nice. I also agree with the government to revoke all small scale mining licenses granted after December 7, and review all licenses ever granted.”
Meanwhile, Erastus Asare Donkor who has been a leading voice against illegal mining in Ghana has also questioned the minister saying “Please can the minister tell us which of the forest reserves they have taken back from illegal miners please”.
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