The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey has condemned the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, for allegedly encouraging artisanal miners to mine without licences.
The Coalition says the directive is unlawful, reckless and a betrayal of the fight against illegal, popularly known as galamsey.
A statement issued by the Coalition on Saturday, October 24, 2026, says it has taken note with grave concern of public statements attributed to the GoldBod CEO in which artisanal miners were encouraged to mine without a licence so long as they avoid forest reserves and river bodies.
According to the statement, the directive failed to appreciate the value of integrated land use planning and the crucial service of food production.
“We condemn this statement in the strongest terms. It is unlawful, reckless, a seed of communal arms conflicts and a betrayal of the fight against galamsey,” it stated.
The Coalition argues that there is no exception to licensing under Ghana’s mining laws.
“What the law actually says: There is no exception to licensing. Under Section 99(2)(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) as amended by Act 995 of 2019, a person who undertakes a mining operation without a licence granted by the Minister commits an offence. The law does not say, ‘except outside forests and rivers,'” it stated.
It added that telling others to mine without a licence is itself a crime, stating that “Section 99 of Act 995 explicitly provides that a person who commands, instigates, employs, or facilitates others to engage in illegal mining commits an offence and is liable on conviction to the same penalty as the illegal miner.”
“The penalty is severe. A Ghanaian who violates this provision is liable to a fine of not less than 10,000 penalty units (GHS 120,000) and not more than 15,000 penalty units (GHS 180,000) and to imprisonment of not less than 15 years and not more than 25 years, or both,” the statement added.
It is therefore demanding an immediate retraction and unqualified apology from the GoldBod CEO, and calling on the President, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources and the Minerals Commission to reaffirm that no mining activity is legal without a licence.
The Coalition is also calling on the Office of the Attorney-General to investigate the statement for the offence of abetment of illegal mining, and urging security agencies to protect farmers and landowners against possible invasion following the statement.
“GoldBod was established to formalize and regulate artisanal mining, not to encourage its illegalization. If we normalise mining without licences, we destroy the very licensing regime that separates legal small-scale mining from galamsey,” it stated.
Meanwhile, GoldBod has rejected the claim that its CEO endorsed illegal mining.
