The Acting Executive Director of the Forest Services Division at the Forestry Commission, Lydia Opoku, is urging chiefs and community members in galamsey-affected areas to support Forest Guards who are risking their lives to stop illegal mining.

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She noted that the miners are often backed by well-armed groups, making it difficult for forest officials to confront them alone.

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Speaking to the media in Kumasi on Thursday, May 8, after visiting some illegal mining sites, she appealed for community involvement. “The miners are being protected by armed tasks and the sophisticated machines they are holding, we cannot match them. So, we are pleading with the communities, chiefs, to assist to protect the Forestry Commission to protect the forest,” she said.

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Meanwhile, under the government’s Blue Water Initiative led by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, 453 personnel have completed four weeks of intensive training at the Ghana Navy Forward Base in Ezilibo, in the Western Region’s Jomoro District.

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They are set to be deployed within a week to support the Navy in protecting the country’s major rivers from galamsey operations.

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