DAAD Alumni Convene Workshop in Wa to Promote Sustainable Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Alumni has launched a two-day workshop in Wa, Upper West Region, focused on artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). The event, titled “Managing Small-Scale and Artisanal Mining: A Community Mining Perspective in Northern Ghana,” brought together DAAD alumni, industry experts, regulators, academics, security personnel, and traditional leaders to discuss responsible and sustainable mining practices.

Workshop convenor Mr. Benjamin Naah highlighted that while ASM is a vital source of livelihood and economic activity, poor management can lead to significant environmental, social, health, and economic challenges. He emphasized that the workshop aims to foster collaboration among stakeholders to enhance regulation, monitoring, community involvement, and policy enforcement.

Dr. Issah Baddianaah from William V.S. Tubman University, Liberia, revealed that approximately 85 percent of mining activities in Ghana operate without licenses. He attributed this to high registration fees, delays in permit processing, political ambivalence, a top-down licensing approach, corruption, increased foreign participation in the ASM sector, and weak law enforcement. Dr. Baddianaah called for concerted, collaborative efforts to promote responsible and sustainable mining.

Prince Boateng Danso, District Officer for the Wa Mining District of the Minerals Commission, noted that over one million Ghanaians engage in artisanal and small-scale mining, each supporting at least five dependents, underscoring ASM’s dual role as a livelihood and environmental concern. Addressing licensing challenges, he warned of middlemen complicating and inflating the process and urged miners to liaise directly with the Minerals Commission.