Traditional Leaders Urged to Unite In the Fight  Against Illegal Mining

The Deputy Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah has called on traditional leaders to take a firm stand against illegal mining and other environmentally destructive practices, warning that the continued degradation of Ghana’s natural resources threatens the nation’s sustainable future.

Delivering a speech on behalf of the Minister at the 2025 Ohum Festival of the Akuapem Mampong’s, in the Easter Region on Saturday, 20^th October 2025, she said the menace of illegal mining continues to undermine government’s investment in national development and environmental conservation.

The Deputy Minister observed that, Ghana is blessed with fertile lands, forests, minerals, and water bodies. Yet these resources are under increasing pressure from illegal mining, deforestation, pollution, and unsustainable farming practices and cautioned that if traditional leaders do not act decisively and collectively, the land that fed our ancestors will not be able to feed the younger generations.

she emphasized that traditional leaders remain the original custodians of Ghana’s lands, forests, and rivers, and therefore have a moral and cultural duty to lead community efforts to protect the environment.

According to Hon. Sowah, Chiefs can play a critical role by enforcing community by-laws, discouraging illegal mining and sand winning, and promoting reforestation and environmental education among their subjects.

She reaffirmed government’s commitment to deepen collaboration with the chieftaincy institution, noting that the Ministry continues to integrate traditional authorities into local governance structures to enhance participatory and sustainable development.

She used the platform to inform the traditional leaders and the people of Akuapem Mampong series of development projects launched by President John Dramani Mahama, such as infrastructure expansion, sanitation improvement, and local economic empowerment initiatives programs which, he said, can only yield their full benefits if Ghana’s natural environment is preserved.

She further noted that the projects were designed to uplift the communities, but they will lose their impact if the lands and rivers that sustain the people are destroyed. The fight against illegal mining must therefore be seen as a shared national responsibility.

Source: Chantal Aidoo

Public Relations Unit, MLGCRA