President John Dramani Mahama has warned that illegal mining, widely known as galamsey, has become deeply embedded in Ghanaian society, cutting across political, traditional, and local leadership structures.

Speaking during a meeting with Organised Labour at the Jubilee House in Accra on Tuesday, March 17, the President described the situation as a complex national challenge.

“Illegal mining has eaten into the fabric of our society. It is not only a menace, but it involves a circle of traditional rulers, political party appointees and others,” he stated.

President Mahama noted that the problem is further complicated by shifting political allegiances, with some operators aligning themselves with successive governments to continue their activities.

“Even when one party changes, those running some operations move to the next and say, ‘now that you have come, take over and let’s share.’ So I don’t kid myself that we don’t have our own people involved,” he added.

He acknowledged that the work of the anti-illegal mining task force remains difficult, particularly in communities where enforcement teams face resistance from local residents.

“The work is not easy. They go to a community and the chiefs, the youth and everybody come out to resist them. We cannot win this fight overnight, but we must not relent,” he said.

The president also linked the rise in illegal mining to challenges in the cocoa sector, noting that low producer prices have pushed some farmers to abandon cocoa farming for gold mining.

“It doesn’t help when we have a crisis in the cocoa industry. The low prices paid to farmers made some of them give up their farms for gold mining,” he explained.

He expressed optimism that ongoing reforms, including a new pricing mechanism aimed at ensuring farmers receive up to 70 percent of global prices, will help reverse the trend.

President Mahama further highlighted logistical constraints hampering the fight against galamsey, particularly the lack of patrol equipment to monitor rivers and forest reserves.

“One of the problems we have is the lack of patrol boats to monitor our waterways consistently,” he noted.

He added that government is working with the Finance, Defence and Interior ministries to provide the necessary resources, including patrol equipment and improved facilities for security personnel, to sustain the anti-galamsey campaign.