Lands Minister Announces Small-scale Mining Licences Auditing
The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Kofi Buah, has announced the establishment of a technical committee to audit all operational mining licences.
The Technical Small Scale Mining Review Committee will be headed by Alhaji Yusif Sulemana, the Deputy Lands Minister and deputized by the Director for the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology.
It will be made up of representatives from the Minerals Commission, the Environmental Protection Authority, the Water Resource Commission Forestry Commission and the Attorney General’s Office.
According to the Lands Minister, the move has become necessary after two probes found that the current licensing regime was fraught with illegalities.
“The objective is to audit all licenses to ensure that they are properly acquired and that due process was followed; that they meet all conditions of continued validity with respect to how they have dealt with the environment.”
All licence holders have therefore been directed to cooperate fully and subject their documentations to the validation and auditing process.
He warned that persons who fail at this will have their licences revoked.
The Committee has two months to carry out this mandate and submit its report to the Minister.
Meanwhile, Small Scale Mining licences issued from December 7, 2024, have all been revoked.
Source opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini
