Deputy CEO of the Forestry Commission, Elikem Kotoko, has outlined a series of strategic interventions by the current administration to combat illegal mining, describing them as a clear departure from previous ineffective measures.
Kotoko said the government has rolled out initiatives that focus on prevention, enforcement, and environmental recovery.
He highlighted the launch of water guards, also referred to as river guards, and the establishment of ARCOMS, a new community-based skills initiative that did not exist under the previous administration.
He pointed to decisive policy shifts taken since President John Mahama assumed office.
“The very moment President Mahama took office, the first thing he did was exercise the issuance of licenses.
“What that means is that nobody is going to be getting any new licenses and therefore nobody can now say, I just got a license to further deepen the woods we find ourselves in,” Kotoko explained.
He also revealed that out of 44 forest reserves under siege, nine were declared red zones. “When the new regime came to power, they reclaimed all nine red zones and changed them from red to green. That is a significant achievement,” he emphasized.
Kotoko added that the government has moved to repeal outdated legal frameworks that enabled mining in forest reserves.
“The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources kicked in motion a letter to the Attorney General to consider a repeal of LI2462. That must be reversed,” he said.
On the ground, new security measures have been introduced, with permanent deployments replacing the previous model of temporary operations.
“In the past we had operations, then they go back and these people also return. But what we intend doing this time is to make sure that these are deployments being made there to be stationed at these places,” he explained.
Although some have likened the measure to a mini state of emergency, Kotoko maintained that the focus is on results. “People can call it whatever.
“We want to see results. President Mahama has stated clearly that he’s on top of issues, he gets proper briefing, and he doesn’t think that we need to declare a state of emergency right now,” he added.
