Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah is the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources-designate
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources-designate, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has indicated plans by the National Democratic Congress government to introduce new initiatives aimed at restoring forest reserves damaged by illegal mining activities.
Appearing before Parliament’s Appointments Committee for his vetting on Monday, January 27, 2025, Armah-Kofi Buah stated that these initiatives, if implemented, would help restore damaged lands and polluted water bodies.
“I am very excited about new initiatives that will help us to heal the wounds of our country. Our country is bleeding, and our forests which are really at the heart and soul of our survival have been completely devastated and damaged,” he said.
Hinting at the measures being adopted by the government, the Member of Parliament of Ellembele, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, stated that a ‘blue water’ initiative would be introduced to specifically address areas affected by illegal mining.
He explained that the objective of this initiative is to rehabilitate the degraded environment and transform these areas into economic centers of recovery.
“This is what the NDC intends to do. We are bringing three great initiatives which are the ‘blue water’ initiative, which seeks to heal and harness the environment by turning areas degraded by illegal mining into hubs of economic and ecological recovery. That is what we are going to do,” he said.
The lawmaker, representing the NDC, also added that the ‘Tree for Life’ and ‘Restore Ghana’ initiatives would be implemented.
These initiatives will focus on promoting reforestation across the country and restoring polluted water bodies.
“We are also going to do the ‘tree for life’ initiative where reafforestation will be intensified. We are not only going to focus on reafforestation in the forest but also encourage afforestation across the country.
“We are going to push for another policy of ‘restore Ghana’ to deal with the issue of galamsey-impacted land and water bodies through a comprehensive land and water-based rehabilitation. These are things we are going to do to address the damage and heal the wounds,” he added.
As disclosed by the minister-designate, these initiatives highlight the government’s commitment to addressing and combating the activities of illegal mining.
MAG/AE
You can also watch the latest compilation of Twi news below: