Over 60 community leaders, environmental mining advocates and the media have benefited from a capacity building training organised by the Nature and Development Foundation (NDF) to enhance their insight on addressing irresponsible mining across the country.
The participants drawn mainly from mineral extraction communities were equipped with critical skills in evidence gathering, personal safety, cyber and organizational security to ensure effective documentation and protection from potential harm.
The training held in the Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi from August 25 to August 27, 2025, saw facilitators take stakeholders through practical tools to address the profound impacts of irresponsible practices often associated with mining operations.
Speaking to Luv News, private legal practitioner Ms. JoyAnn Obeng reiterated the need, to lead a charge and chart a path that would be beneficial to the fight against irresponsible mining.
“We have helped attendees to appreciate why it is important for them to be advocates, giving the reason that irresponsible mining affects us all. The more knowledge is spread, the more everybody becomes aware, and the more proactive everybody becomes.”
“Also when we look at the personal safety and security of persons who join in this fight, you must as much as possible, protect your life.We don’t want a situation where you go to gather evidence and you get mixed up in something that is untoward, get injured, harmed, or ultimately you die”, she hinted.
Aside education and awareness creation, evidence gathering to a large extent, guarantees that credible data is collected and utilized for advocacy and legal purposes with issues of environmental impact analysis, human rights concerns, and security breaches.
Ms. Obeng further entreated Ghanaians to exhibit some level of integrity and patriotism, regards tackling irresponsible mining. She believes that the problem goes beyond the flouting of rules and regulations and that honesty, transparency and an unwavering commitment to doing the right things will go a long way.
“Having integrity is very principal and that should be the hallmark. You can’t say you are fighting irresponsible mining and be swayed by gifts and whatnot from those in that business. You have to have integrity even when nobody is watching you, or even when nobody is rewarding you. You have to know that you are doing this for posterity because maintaining and protecting the environment, is a constitutional duty.”
Currently, the Environment Ministry has officially engaged and written to the Attorney General on the immediate revocation of legal instrument 2462. The LI 2462 is a law passed by the government, granting mining rights within the critical ecosystems of forest reserves.
On their part, some attendees promised to pass on the knowledge and skills acquired on to their folks upon return. They were also thankful to the organizers for periodically lending them support through such fora.
NDF, and its partners have in the past held similar workshops on land rights, environmental law and regulatory framework, negotiation, dialogue and conflict resolution among others.
The ‘Building Resilient and Active Communities in Extractive Landscapes in Ghana’ (BRACE) project is being implemented by the Nature and Development Foundation, A Rocha Ghana, and WACAM, with funding from the European Union.
The initiative underscores a growing commitment to promote sustainable and ethical mining in Ghana, acknowledging that robust oversight, strong community engagement, and empowered local actors are essential for long-term success.
Source: Patricia Ama Bonsu
