Alan Kyerematen’s Movement for Change unveils ten-point action plan to end galamsay

The Movement for Change has urged an immediate and complete halt to illegal mining (galamsey), warning that it poses an “existential threat” to the nation.

The call follows “the ghastly incident which occurred on Wednesday, 13th August 2025, which claimed the lives of eight (8) gallant men of our nation.” In a strongly worded statement, the group said, “there is now more than ever before, an urgent and critical need to put a complete stop to the existential threat of Galamsey.”

To this end, the Movement has proposed a Ten-Point Action Plan contained in its Great Transformational Plan (GTP).

The first step, it said, is that “by an Executive Instrument, ban all small-scale and artisanal mining activities, whether legal or illegal, with immediate effect, for a substantive period of one year.”

It further called on Parliament “to suspend under a Certificate of Urgency, the application of Legislative Instrument (LI) 2462 to stop permits that allow mining in forest reserves in Ghana.”

As part of its measures, the Movement also wants the government to “revoke all small-scale and community mining licenses issued by the Minerals Commission within the last 15 years. The revocation will be followed by a comprehensive and complete audit of all small-scale and community mining licenses issued within the said period. A task force made up of representatives of the Goldbod, Environmental Protection Agency, Water Resources Commission, and Minerals Commission, with appropriate technical support, shall oversee the audit.”

After the audit, the Movement proposes that the government “issue new mining licences … with the consent of traditional authorities in the relevant areas.”

The group also recommended the immediate demobilisation of equipment, saying: “Demobilize all machinery, equipment, including earth-moving equipment, and any other form of machinery currently in use on all existing small-scale and community mining land sites. The equipment will be inventoried, stored and preserved by the 48 Engineer’s Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces.”

In addition, the Movement called for the rehabilitation of degraded lands within the period of the ban. “Establish and fund a comprehensive programme for the restoration and regeneration of all degraded land sites within the one-year period of the ban of small-scale mining activities. Young men and women currently engaged in small-scale mining activities will be deployed under the said programme. The programme would be led and supervised by the Forestry Commission with technical oversight by the Forestry Research Institute of CSIR.”

On water bodies, the group recommended: “Establish a programme to be jointly managed by the Water Resources Commission and Environmental Protection Agency, with technical support from the Water Research Institute of CSIR, for a complete restoration of all river bodies within the period of one year while the ban is in force.”

The plan also proposes stiffer punishment for offenders. “Introduce new legislation and regulations in Parliament that will impose a complete ban on mining in river bodies and forest reserves, even when the ban on small-scale mining is lifted. The sanctions regime associated with this new legislation will include life imprisonment for violation of the provisions of the said legislation.”

Looking ahead, the Movement for Change wants the creation of new opportunities for young people engaged in galamsey. “Establish a new Youth in Responsible Mining Initiative, under which groups of young people previously engaged in Galamsey, will be supported by the Government to establish and own mining companies as private legal commercial entities (not cooperatives). These youth-owned mining companies will be provided mining licensing rights and other permits, as well as machinery and equipment for mining activities under a Work-and-Pay basis, with Off-taker Agreements from Goldbod.”

Finally, the group wants citizens to be empowered to monitor mining activities. “Establish a Citizens Mining Protection Rights Group in each mining community, which will act as the watchdogs for responsible mining.”

The Movement for Change stressed that its Ten-Point Plan “has been elaborated in more detail, in the Great Transformational Plan (GTP) of the Movement for Change.