GoldBod adopts Bawumia's idea to use Geological Survey Department for responsible mining

A proposal for responsible mining by former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, which was hailed in the buildup to the 2024 election, has been copied by the government through the GoldBod.

With galamsey a topical national issue during the 2024 election campaign, both leading candidates, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and John Dramani Mahama made their anti galamsey proposals public for scrutiny.

Among Dr Bawumia's manifesto proposal was his plan to tackle the galamsey menace through technology, that is geological mapping to ensure "responsible and data-driven mining."

Dr Bawumia proposed to empower the Geological Survey Authority to map mineral-rich areas accurately and provide miners with precise data to prevent speculative and destructive mining practices that often lead to environmental degradation.

Bawumia's geological mapping proposal was hailed by various mining experts as the best anti galamsey measure to tackle environmental degradation.

Interestingly, the governing NDC, which did not make such a proposal in its anti galamsey measures, has now adopted the geological mapping step through the GoldBod

The GoldBod yesterday signed an agreement with the Ghana Geological Survey Authority (GGSA) to conduct geological investigations in some mining areas.

In what has been described as phase one of the agreement, the GCSA will conduct geological investigations in Funsi, Atuna and Bensere East.

According to a publication on the GoldBod's Facebook page announcing the signing, the move "is a major step by the GoldBod towards supporting responsible and data-driven mining in Ghana," exactly the same quote Dr Bawumia used for his geological mapping proposal

The cost of the phase one of the geological investigation services to be provided by the GGSA over a four (4) months period is GHS27.5 million.