Crackdown on illegal miners on Black Volta ongoing — Minister

Saeed Muhazu Jibril, the Savannah Regional Minister, says the operation by the military, the Regional Security Council, and the Minerals Commission to eradicate illegal miners on the Black Volta is ongoing.

This follows an updated report the Regional Minister received from the Six Infantry Battalion of the Ghana Armed Forces, the Savannah Regional Security Council, and the Minerals Commission on Wednesday, July 26, 2023.

This was in a statement issued by the Public Relations Unit of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and shared with the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday.

It will be recalled that on Friday, July 21, 2023, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, briefed the media on the operations on the Black Volta and assured of the Government’s determination to crackdown on illegal miners on the river, their activities of which had surged in areas such as Jama, Jugboi and Bamboi in the Savannah Region.

The Minister gave the assurance that the Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Illegal Mining was fully determined to halt illegal mining activities along the major rivers and waterbodies, which had been declared ‘Red Zones’ by the Government.

The report disclosed that 20 Changfans (floating platforms) were confiscated and destroyed by the Military on the Black Volta, to serve as a deterrent to others.