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Land Ministry to clamp down on illegal clay miners at Shama
Illegal clay miners in the Shama enclave of the Western Region have been given an ultimatum to cease their operations or face sanctions from the government, Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr George Mireku Duker, has warned.
He stressed: “The District Security Committee (DISEC) has been directed to clamp down on illegal clay mining and take steps to regularise their operations to ensure sanity and also save the environment in Shama areas.This cannot continue.”
Mr Duker gave the directives in an interview with journalists recently, after he had toured a degraded illegal clay mining site at Old Daboase Junction, in the Shama District of the Western Region.
The visit revealed large tracts of devastated lands dotted with deep ponds.
The Deputy Minister declared : “The ministry will collaborate with the Minstry of Trade and Industry and together we find ways of dealing with the ceramic companies because the clay miners are mining illegally and the companies are condoning and conniving with illegal miners. They are stopping today.”
Although, he declined to give details and timelines on the ultimatum, Mr Duker maintained that until there was order in the clay mining industry, the directive to Shama Assembly was still binding.
He said:“It’s unfortunate; if you want to mine, follow the protocols and mine according to the dictates of the law. I have given some specific assigments to DISEC which they will soon roll out but as for the details I can’t disclose them.”
The Deputy Minister added :“DISEC is to take control and make sure they regulate their activities. those who want to mine must secure licences before they do so.”
On the degraded clay mine site at Old Daboase junction, he disclosed that somebody got the site and was mining illegally.
One critical issue at the sites, he noted, was reclamation of land after mining and indicated government’s desire to ensure that it was done in accordance with the law.
Mr Duker told the journalists that companies which benefitted from the clay would collaborate with the clay mining association to reclaim all degraed sites at Shama.
“If you want to mine, you must acquire the necessary licences and follow all the protocols in accordance with the dictates of the law. We need all hands on the deck and ensure that mining becomes an enviable business in this country.” he stated.
Reacting to allegations that the Shama Assembly had taken money from the clay miners for reclamation, he said, “we’ll investigate it, because they are not licensed and so you can’t take something from them.”
Meanwhile, at a meeting with small scale miners, he revealed that government records showed that all mining operators at Shama had no licences, and, therefore, engaged in illegalities.
The Deputy Minister of mining told the meeting that the United States in 2015 bagged about $1.4billion and 1.9 billion in 2019 respectively from the clay industy, noting that same could not be said about Ghana’s industry.
He regretted that illegal Ghanaian clay miners were condoning with foreign tile makers and depriving Ghana of getting benefits from the natural gifts because of selfish interests.
From Clement Adzei Boye, Old Daboase Junction
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
