The founder and head pastor for The Makers House Chapel International, Dr. Michael Boadi Nyamekye says the government must provide alternative solutions if it wants to ban illegal mining also known as galamsey. Speaking on Starr Chat with Bola Ray, Dr. Nyamekye stated that Ghanaian youth who are into galamsey are there for several reasons such as lack of jobs among others.
“We have to find out why there is artisanal galamsey which means you gather them and sell. People are into that because it brings them their livelihood. If you want to stop galamsey there should be alternative solutions.
“So as long we are not creating those jobs and the cost of capital is high, a young man might have dreamed of doing something and borrowed for 36% per annum in interest. Then the person let me get into the bush, get money from the bush, and start my business”, Dr. Nyamekye stated.
He continued: “Can we make the cost of capital or funds cheaper, can we create avenues of employment so that the Ghanaian youth will not go into the forest? “The government should also have policies that regulate community mining. Can we also help introduce chemicals that are not very evasive and not too harsh on the environment?”.
Meanwhile, the Presidential Candidate of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), Kofi Akpaloo has outlined his vision for transforming Ghana’s mining sector by promoting responsible gold mining.
Speaking on GHOne TV, Mr Akpaloo proposed bringing together small-scale miners, known as “galamseyers,” to form a large-scale mining company.
“What we are going to do is we are going to bring all the galamseyers together and then ask them to collectively put their resources together to form huge capital to go into a large-scale mining.”
“I believe large-scale mining will enable better regulation and ensure that miners follow the right procedures.” Mr Akpaloo estimated that with about 3.5 million people involved in galamsey, this collective effort could generate a substantial capital base.
