The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah, has disclosed that government efforts to restore degraded forest reserves are yielding positive results, following renewed collaboration with the Forestry Commission.

According to the minister, when he assumed office, enforcement officers of the Forestry Commission were poorly equipped and demoralised, making it difficult for them to effectively protect forest reserves. He explained that the situation required urgent intervention to strengthen their capacity and morale.

“We are also working with the Forestry Commission. One of the things we met when we came was that the Forestry Commission law enforcement forestry guards were completely on their knees. And so we had to retool them. We had to start motivating them and give them the tools they need,” he told Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang during her visit to the Ministry on Tuesday, January 27.

Mr Buah noted that these measures are beginning to show results, particularly in areas previously classified as high-risk zones. He expressed satisfaction with the progress made so far, indicating that several forest reserves have been recovered.

“I am happy that we are making a lot of progress. And I can tell you that the nine forest reserves have been reclaimed from the red zones and they are now in the save zone,” the minister added.

Last year, Honourable Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah, revealed that the Forestry Commission had repossessed all 9 red zone forest reserves previously occupied by armed guards.

Mr Buah made this known while engaging the media today, July 23, as part of the Government’s Accountability Series. The sector minister raised concerns in February 2024, about the increasing devastation of Ghana’s forest reserves due to illegal mining activities, commonly known as galamsey.

According to him, nearly 10 out of the 44 forest reserves had been completely taken over by illegal miners, rendering them inaccessible to the Forestry Commission.

Addressing Parliament at the timer, the minister stated that over nine out of the 44 forest reserves have been completely taken over by these illegal mining thugs with impunity, adding that “the Forestry Commission no longer has access to these forest reserves."

He further revealed that an estimated 5,000 hectares of forest land had already been destroyed—an area equivalent to approximately 7,000 football fields.

The Lands Minister noted that Ghana is not out of the woods yet despite repossessing these forest reserves.

“What it means is that the forestry guards are able to enter in and out and when they need reinforcement, they are supported,” he said.

Crack down on illegal mining activities

In April, a total of 47 individuals were arrested for engaging in illegal mining activities along the Tano River and within the Aboi, Subri, and Nimiri forests in the Western Region. This followed a special four-day intelligence-led operation that commenced on April 17, within the Samreboi enclave.

According to the Ghana Police Service, the suspects include 39 Ghanaians and 8 Chinese nationals. The Police indicated that a significant amount of equipment and materials believed to have been used for the mining operations were retrieved. These include seventeen excavators, one bulldozer, four motorbikes, two Toyota Hilux vehicles, one Rav4 vehicle, four pump action guns, one single barrel gun, fifty-four live BB cartridges, and eight pumping machines.

Prosecution begun for the arrested suspects. On Tuesday, 41 of them were arraigned, with 29 remanded into Police custody to reappear before the court on April 30, 2025. Twelve others were also remanded to return to court on May 2, 2025. The remaining seven were put before the court on April 23, 2025.

Two coordinated operations conducted on Friday, June 20, at Nikanika and Adeade in the Central Region led to the arrest of 3 suspects and the seizure of several pieces of mining equipment. The operations were executed by the Ghana Police Service, through its Special Anti-Galamsey Task Force.

The task force proceeded to a mining site at Nikanika. Although no operators were found at the scene, the team retrieved one single-barrel shotgun loaded with a cartridge and three water-pumping machines. The task force extended its operation to Adeade, where three suspects—Prosper Quansah, Chrispin Nartey, and Owusu Gambra—were arrested with an excavator on a lowbed trailer.

One SANY excavator, four unregistered Haojin motorbikes, and one lowbed vehicle with registration number GN 2136-24 were seized from the scene. All exhibits were secured in police custody.

The sector minister noted that 279 trucks conveying illegal lumber were intercepted and fined, and the illegal wood was confiscated and auctioned. He also revealed that 1,200 excavators have been impounded pending validations before clearance at the port.

The minister noted that in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Finance under the GRA Customs Division and the Ports and Harbour Authority, they have initiated a proactive tracking of all imports of excavators and urged moving equipment from the point of entry.

He further revealed that the government is developing a centralized digital platform named the Ghana Mine Repository Tracking Software that has been deployed at the Minerals Commission and is at the advanced stage to support this initiative

“The platform will serve as the single point of integration for all agencies including Customs, DVLA, Ministry of Transport, Minerals Commission, National Security,” the minister said.

It will also provide authorized institutions with real-time permit history, equipment location, and operational compliance. A pilot project of over 191 excavators is currently being tracked in a dedicated control room of the Minerals Commission.

“I believe we are going to that point where every excavator in this country is actually regulated,” he said