Speaking during a courtesy call by the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Otumfuo urged the government to be bold in prosecuting those at the top of the illegal mining chain, rather than focusing only on the youth involved in the activity.

Otumfuo urged the government should go after the ‘big fishes’ in the galamsey business and prosecute them, instead of focusing only on the youth involved in the illegal act.

The Minister’s visit was part of efforts to seek Otumfuo’s support and guidance for the government’s planned reforms in the mining and forestry sectors. He commended the Asantehene for his exemplary leadership, particularly in ensuring litigation-free land administration in the Ashanti Region.

Mr. Buah lamented the devastating impact of galamsey, revealing that 44 out of the country’s 288 forest reserves had been severely degraded due to illegal mining. He also highlighted the alarming deterioration of major water bodies, with turbidity levels rising from 5,000 NTU to 12,000 NTU.

Outlining some immediate measures taken by the government, the Minister mentioned the establishment of an 18-member working committee to review the licensing regime, reclassify mining categories, and overhaul the Community Mining Schemes.

“We are grateful for Otumfuo’s advice and support for the reset agenda that we have embarked on. We’ve laid out a plan to deal with key initiatives, and it started with the inauguration of the 18-member working committee. We are also reclassifying the mining categories and introducing medium-scale mining,” Mr. Buah stated.

The Asantehene acknowledged the efforts being made but urged the Minister to address the root causes of illegal mining by providing alternative livelihood programmes for youth in mining communities. He emphasised that if young people had meaningful and sustainable sources of income, they would be less likely to engage in destructive mining activities.

Otumfuo further advised the Lands Ministry to curb the indiscriminate sale of public lands to politically exposed persons, stressing that such practices must not continue under the Minister’s tenure.

He also commended the government for its afforestation drive and pledged his full support for the initiative, particularly the Tree of Life project, describing it as laudable.