Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has questioned the regulatory framework governing the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) and gold aggregators, arguing that the system could encourage illegal mining.

Speaking during an engagement with the Christian Council, Mr Afenyo-Markin said the framework did not adequately distinguish between legally mined gold and gold produced through illegal mining.

“The way GoldBod has been structured, it is rather encouraging the illegal mining activities we have in our country,” he said.

“Because you see, currently GoldBod does not have a regulation that draws a distinction between regularly mined gold and galamsey gold. So it is like whatever the aggregators bring, we will buy. But are there some regulations to guide aggregators? Now, everybody is mining. Galamsey has gotten out of hand,” he added.

Mr Afenyo-Markin said the spread of illegal mining posed a serious threat to Ghana’s forests and water bodies, particularly the Atewa Forest.

“If we are not careful, Atewa forest will not be there for us again,” he warned.

He also raised concerns about the impact of mining activities on Ghana’s water supply.

“I once chaired the Ghana Water Limited Board. The report coming from Ghana Water is that not only is it becoming more expensive to treat the water, but the extent of contamination of our water bodies is such that some treatment plant cannot even function,” he said.