Stiffer punishment for illegal miners

The Minerals Commission is seeking to amend existing small-scale mining laws to impose stiffer punishment on any individual that engages in illegal mining.

Presently, the law stipulates that anyone who engages in illegal small-scale mining be fined 14,000 penalty units. A unit is valued at GH¢12. “Efforts will be made to seek amendment of the law to enhance the level of punishment.

We think that insufficient sanctions in the laws covering illegal mining is part of the problem. “We are proposing that illegal mining should be made an offence, and that the punishment should not be a fine but offenders must be made to serve a jail-term without bail.

“We want the equipment used by the illegal miners to be confiscated to the state,” Mr. Ben Aryee, Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission, disclosed to the Business and Financial Times after a media briefing in Accra.

So far, Chinese, Indians, Russians, Spaniards, Burkinabes and other West African nationals have been found involved in the illegal mining business.

“Some of our chiefs go to the extent of taking as low as GH¢20.00 before illegally awarding lands to these foreign illegal miners operating in their areas.”

Mr. Aryee expressed regret at the various Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs), as well as the resource-rich communities, for doing little to assist the Commission and other regulatory bodies to arrest the foreigners engaged in illegal mining.

Risk to national security

Illegal mining has become a security menace to the country, and it must be dealt with decisively. Foreign illegal mining operations have serious implications and also come with national security dimensions.

For instance, these foreigners carry weapons and have security dogs to terrorise locals who dare challenge them.

The proliferation of small-arms in such communities could lead to their use for other purposes, such as armed robbery and other violent acts.

They could also be used in instances such as chieftaincy disputes and reprisal attacks from the local communities, which result in killing or maiming of foreigners.

There is also the issue of extensive pollution of water sources by their operations, especially through dredging. Rivers like the Ankrobra, Bonsa, Pra, Offin and Birim are seriously polluted with toxic chemicals such as cyanide and mercury.

These negative developments have prompted government security apparatus such as the National Security, Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) and the Ghana Police Service to intensify their protection and monitoring mechanism on the mining lease sites belonging to the multinational firms to minimise the impact of their operations and activities on the mineral reserves, which has the potential of increasing the nation’s revenue and improving the economy.

A national task-force -- comprising National Security, Ghana Immigration Service, Minerals Commission, Chiefs, and the Municipal and District Chief Executives of the mining communities -- has been tasked to monitor operations of the foreign illegal small-scale mining operators and try to stem it as quickly as possible.

Traditional authorities, landowners and farmers among others, must desist from illegally apportioning land for illegal mining and rather work with regulators to grant mining licences in appropriate locations; thus ensuring that the potential benefits are realised in an optimum manner, taking account of the physical as well as social environment, in a framework of good governance.

“We do not have a choice in this matter. The fight against illegal mining, especially with foreigners involved, is one we must win or else risk losing our land, society and national psyche. Let’s all pitch in and we will succeed.

“While illegal mining (including foreign participation) has assumed national proportions, a sustainable solution can be achieved within a local context, since the activities are localised and start small,” he emphasised.

Mr. Aryee urged all stakeholders to get on board, since no one can remain passive any longer, adding that this is an appeal for all to come together and call upon regulators like the Mineral Commission, Environmental Protection Agency and Water Resources Commission to account for their stewardship in managing the country’s resources.

Multinational mining companies as a matter of urgency need to improve on their corporate social responsibility programmes in the communities where they operate. Their activities need to be visible and dignified to the appreciation of inhabitants.

The Chamber of Mines needs to be proactive in developing achievable strategies and policies for operators of the giant mining firms to direct their social programmes toward developing local indigenes to guarantee the future of the youth and growing generation in the community.

It is an appeal for the Ministry of Land and Forestry, Local Government and Rural Development and the Attorney Generals Department to collaborate and ensure total eradication of the illegal small-scale mining operators’ activities and institute enforceable punishment, to deter perpetrators of such activities which are affecting growth of the industry.

Statistical data

Mining on a small-scale basis is still a viable and desirable economic activity that can provide livelihoods for large numbers -- especially in remote, deprived areas with sometimes very little else in terms of alternatives.

There is no reliable statistical data on illegal mining; it is believed that these activities have significant impact on mainstream mining operations.

Last year, gold production from the activities of small-scale gold mining -- both legal and illegal sources -- totalled approximately 800,000 ounces, representing 23 percent of the total gold production in the country, available data has shown.

It is seen as a vibrant and significant sub-sector of the mining industry in the country, accounting for about 10 percent of total annual gold output and over 60 percent of total annual diamond output.

These activities have not only bred problems of social, economic, and environmental nature; they also absorb more employment than any formal mining sector, and reach those who live at the lower-end.

Although total employment figures for the sub-sector are far from accurate, it is estimated to employ between 100,000 and 300,000 people -- mostly unskilled rural labour.

Year       Number of Small-Scale Mining Licences Issued

2002                             1

2005                          17

2006                          70

2010                         270

2011                         235

2012                         53

By the formalisation through passage of the Small Scale Gold Mining Law PNDCL 218 -- the provisions of which have been expanded and incorporated into Act 703 of 2006 -- today there are two types of miners operating on small-scale basis: those with licences and operating legally, and those without licences that are operating illegally, on any particular piece of ground sized up to 25 acres.

Small-scale mining is reserved for Ghanaians who are over 18 years and exhibit the capacity to venture into the business to obtain permit from the commission through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources after satisfying all the necessary documentation.

After many decades of prohibition of small-scale gold mining in Ghana, government legalised it in 1989 in order to stem the ever-present state of conflict associated with it as well as the smuggling of precious minerals across our borders to neighboring countries, while formalising the immense socio-economic potential.

This legalisation has resulted in a tremendous increase in mineral production from the small-scale mining sector.

Small-scale miners are required by law to be registered in order to work on concessions to which they have legal access, and are subject to regulation by either the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) or the Ghana Minerals Commission, or both.