Zanetor: Ghana cannot beat galamsey without a united government effort
Environment, Science and Technology Minister-designate Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings says Ghana's fight against illegal mining requires ministries, agencies and local authorities to work towards one strategy rather than operating separately. She says stronger coordination and regular reporting would be among her priorities if approved by Parliament.
Ghana's fight against illegal mining, known locally as galamsey, requires a coordinated effort across government rather than separate interventions by individual ministries and agencies, minister-designate Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings has said.
Ms Agyeman-Rawlings said tackling the environmental and human impact of illegal mining should be treated as an "all-of-government and all-of-society imperative".
She was speaking during her vetting by Parliament's Appointments Committee on Thursday, August 27.
Her comments came as she outlined what she would do to strengthen Ghana's response to illegal mining if approved as Minister for Environment, Science and Technology.
She said the problem cuts across several areas of government and that poor coordination could result in ministries and agencies duplicating efforts or working towards different objectives.
"The fight against illegal mining and the subsequent damage it does to the environment and human life are an all-of-government and all-of-society imperative," she told the committee.
Ms Agyeman-Rawlings said she would seek early engagement with ministers whose portfolios are directly connected to the issue, including the ministry responsible for lands and local government.
The aim, she said, would be to ensure that the various ministries were "on the same page" and to avoid what she called a "silo effect".
Galamsey and local government
Ms Agyeman-Rawlings said illegal mining largely takes place within Ghana's local governance system, making collaboration with decentralised agencies particularly important.
She identified the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as one of the institutions with which her ministry would need to work closely.
If approved, she said she would first seek a briefing from the EPA on the current situation and the interventions already under way.
The minister-designate also called for regular reporting on measures being taken to combat illegal mining.
She said better reporting would improve transparency and allow government to assess whether its interventions were having the intended impact.
The emphasis on coordination reflects the number of government institutions involved in the response to illegal mining, with responsibilities spanning environmental protection, land management and local government.
Rather than proposing a single new intervention during her vetting, Ms Agyeman-Rawlings focused on improving how existing government efforts are connected.
She said bringing the relevant ministers together would provide a basis for a common approach and ensure that agencies worked towards the same objective.