Illegal artisanal mining has become a real headache for the Ghanaian government in recent years and a serious threat to cocoa farming in that country. According to agenceecofin.com, the Ghana Cocoa Council (Cocobod) recently pointed out that this practice, known locally as “Galamsey”, leads to the destruction of vast areas of forest land and cocoa plantations, as well as the pollution of rivers and water sources, which has had a negative impact

According to Cocobod, in 2021, the phenomenon led to the destruction of more than 19,000 hectares of cocoa plantations, equivalent to 2% of the national orchard. He also indicated that for the 2021/2022 cocoa season, “Galamsey” is cited as one of the main causes of the sector's poor performance. “The phenomenon would have caused 4.8 billion cedis to lose investment in 35 hectares of cocoa plantations in Boinso, in the western region,” the news agency continues

He adds that, according to Joseph Boahen Aidoo, CEO of Cocobod, the destruction of farms by illegal artisanal mining is more common in the Ashanti, Eastern, Western regions, which are home to more than 90% of the country's cocoa production. To overcome this problem, he continues, the Ghanaian state is implementing a strategy based both on repression and on offering alternative means of subsistence to people who engage in this practice. However, the site notes, this strategy is still slow to prove effective

Ghana, it should be remembered, is the world's second largest cocoa producer, behind Côte d'Ivoire. And the cocoa sector contributes 9% of its gross domestic product in addition to creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. But in recent years, more and more Ghanaians, living below the poverty line, have started this activity. “According to data relayed in recent years by the local media, about one million Ghanaians engage in this practice, which would support around 4.5 million people but would cause losses of several billion cedis to the State,” reports the Ecofin agency

Ghana, the largest gold producer in Africa in recent years, also draws billions of dollars in revenue from its mining sector. According to official estimates, the mining sector's contribution to the national economy would be even greater without the hundreds of millions of dollars that the country loses every year from illegal mining.

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