Ghana is Africa’s Largest Gold Producer, But It Has an Illegal Mining Issue
Ghana is one of the world’s gold hotspots. It is Africa’s largest producer of gold and it ranks sixth globally. In 2023, 4 million ounces were produced. It is essential to Ghana’s economy, contributing around 7% of gross domestic product.
Ghana’s gold mines are found in most parts of the country, and the mining history can be traced back hundreds of years. However, a form of mining known as artisanal, illegal or small-scale mining has become the most popular. Though it is recognised by law as a legitimate livelihood source, evidence shows that more than 85% of small-scale mining operations still occur in the informal and illegal sector of the economy outside state regulation.
Now found in 14 of Ghana’s 16 regions, artisanal mining has become an important source of revenue and income for poor people living in rural areas. It employs over a million people and accounts for 40% of gold produced in Ghana, according to the country’s Minerals Commission, which regulates all gold sales.
But illegal small-scale mining operations wreak havoc on the environment, farming, cocoa production and drinking water supplies.
The Conversation Africa has published several articles that trace the reasons for the surge in illegal small-scale mining and what needs to be done about it.
Illegal mining headache
For many years, Ghana’s government focused on large-scale mining. Small-scale mining was neglected until 1989, when a new law was passed to legalise and regularise the sector by introducing a licensing process. Despite this, many miners remain unlicensed and aren’t formally registered in any way.
Over the last decade, a large number of Chinese investors and miners entered Ghana’s gold market. Ghanaian artisanal miners quickly seized the opportunity and entered into informal partnerships with the Chinese investors. Most partnerships were illegal because Ghana’s laws reserve small-scale mining for Ghanaians.
Gabriel Botchway and Gordon Crawford reveal the devastating impact this relationship has had on communities and the sector.
Inability to control mining
Illegal mining has been difficult to control, for various reasons.
Researcher Richard Kumah explains that though Ghana has enacted over 30 laws to deal with its mining ecosystem, there’s a disconnect between the reality of illegal small-scale miners and the legal regime. Two major issues underlie this disconnect.
First, the mines are transient but getting a mining licence is time-consuming.
Second, the regulatory framework doesn’t take into account the diverse reality of operations. It is difficult for people to comply with rules that do not adapt to their conditions: the rules will seem irrelevant to these people.
Prince Bansah explores why successive Ghanaian governments haven’t been able to enforce the laws that exist to address small-scale mining. His study reveals that corruption is a major obstacle.
Finding solutions
Academics have proposed several solutions.
Richard Kumah suggests the devolution of small-scale mining decisions to municipal and district assemblies working with traditional authorities. This would include reforming the licensing system so that the cost of formalising operations aligned with the complex socio-economic realities of most miners.
Albert Kobina Mensah argues that command-and-control strategies or criminalisation policies don’t work. Policies must address the reasons people engage in the behaviour in the first place.
Solutions could potentially lie with traditional authorities. Land in Ghana is held customarily by traditional leaders like chiefs and family heads. Acquiring land for mining requires the informal granting of permission for a small fee with the relevant traditional owner of the land.
James Boafo suggests that customary representatives must also be regular actors in state institutions in charge of land and natural resources.
