Ankobra River cleared of changfan machines as government troops intensifies fight against galamsey

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has inspected a 16-kilometre stretch of the Ankobra River in the Western Region, highlighting the government's strides in combating illegal mining. Under Operation Water Shield, authorities have removed over 3,000 illegal mining machines and arrested 237 suspects.

The operation, involving the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), the Special Boat Squadron, and Blue Water Guards, aims to dismantle illegal changfa mining operations and secure riverbanks against groups protecting illegal miners. Security personnel are now stationed permanently along the river. The Minister emphasized the shift from sporadic raids to continuous security deployments yielding positive results.

He rejected claims of losing the fight, noting the river's improvement from being heavily polluted and hard to navigate to now being clear and navigable. Operation Water Shield has resulted in the removal of more than 3,000 illegal mining machines, with 144 of the arrests comprising foreign nationals. The initiative targets not only the equipment but also the networks and syndicates supporting illegal mining.

The operation will expand to other major water bodies, including the Birim, Tano, and Offin rivers, before year's end. Authorities are also targeting underground tunnels constructed by illegal miners to disrupt their activities at the source.