President John Mahama has announced that excavators can no longer be imported into Ghana without a government-issued permit, a move aimed at combating illegal mining and protecting the country’s water bodies.
Speaking at the Global Mining in Motion Summit on Monday, June 2, 2025, Mahama emphasized the need for stricter regulations to control mining activities.
“We are going to change the permitting regime. You will not be allowed to import an excavator or put it on a ship unless you get a permit before you can bring an excavator,” he stated.
Mahama expressed concern over the overwhelming number of excavators in Ghana, saying, “Ghana has more excavators than any other country in Africa.”
As part of measures to curb illegal mining, excavators will now be tracked to determine if they are being used unlawfully.
“We will track excavators as the ministers said, in order to know if they are being used for illegal mining or not,” he added.
Mahama clarified that artisanal miners are not enemies of the state. With proper training and support, they could contribute positively to Ghana’s development.
“Artisanal miners, are not enemies of the state. If properly trained and supported, they can be allies in our development. Working together with small scale miners will reclaim our forest reserves and restore the purity of our water bodies. Our river guards are working on clearing mining activities in our water bodies and on the banks of our rivers. We have successfully cleared out illegal miners out of nine no go zone forest reserves,” he explained.
The President attributed illegal mining’s devastating environmental impact to poor governance and lack of enforcement.
“Mining cannot be sustainable unless it is also responsible. Environmental degradation, water pollution and community displacement are not inevitable by-products of mining. They are the consequences of poor governance and enforcement. By strengthening the environment, social and governance framework, across the mining sector this will include mandating site rehabilitation. This means that small scale miners and medium scale miners must also have rehabilitation clauses in their permits to reclaim the land,” Mahama emphasized.
Requirement of a Before Importing Excavators: A Step in the Right Direction?
It is common knowledge that the rate at which illegal mining popularly known as Galamsey is destroying our environment is very alarming. Water bodies being polluted every single day and the menace still persists. Thus, requiring permit in order to import excavators which are the main intruments used in casuing this damage is indeed a step in the right direction.
However, more must be done in terms of enforcement. As the President noted, the core problem among others is lack of enforcement. Bodies charged with protecting the environment must stand up to their tasks as provided by law. The Minerals Commission must ensure compliance with the provisions of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) by making sure that even legal miners(which they are require to) secure all permits required to begin operation from the Environmental Protection Agency and The Water Resource Commission among others. These bodies must work hand in hand to ensure that environmental impact assesment is conducted on the future effects of such activities that are to be carried out on any land.
In sum, the laws governing the mining regime in Ghana are quite broad and elaborate in their own ways and sufficient to cover the problems facing our environment. By strictly enforcing the provisions of the laws governing each of the bodies above in relation to mining and other related activities, one can be rest assured that the problem of illegal mining can be effectively be tackled.
