Government recently doubled efforts to combat illegal small scale mining
Government is to launch a National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programmes for illegal small-scale miners affected by the activities of Operation Halt II, the national exercise to rid Ghana’s water bodies of illegal mining activities.
The programme, part of efforts to create jobs for young people, will be anchored on six main interventions, namely, National Land Reclamation and Re-afforestation; Agricultural and Agro-processing; Mine Support Services and Community Enhancement Projects.
Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister of Finance disclosed this when he presented the Mid-year fiscal policy review of the budget statement and economic policy of the government to Parliament on Thursday in Accra.
He said the initiative, which would target mainly illegal miners displaced by the ongoing efforts to sanitise the mining industry, would also include Apprenticeship, Skills Training and Entrepreneurship; Responsible, Viable and Sustainable Community Mining.
The government, the Minister held, recognised the need to protect the environment, just as it found it necessary to provide alternative employment and livelihoods for miners, who would inevitably fall through the cracks.
“We are determined to ensure the responsible or sustainable exploitation of the Lands and Natural Resources of our country,” he added.
To further ensure sustainable land management for long-term socio-economic and ecological functions, Mr Ofori-Atta was sure that the digitization of records on lands would also be a step forward towards an efficient land administration in the country.
“With these interventions, the government seeks to develop an efficient, robust, land administration anchored on integrity, which responds to the needs of the citizenry and contributes to the development of the national economy,” he said.