Ghana is set to enter a nationwide lockdown on Monday, September 30, as civil servants and labor unions intensify protests against illegal mining, locally known as galamsey. These unregulated mining activities have caused widespread environmental destruction, prompting demands for the government to declare a state of emergency in mining regions and revoke mining licenses.
The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has raised alarms over severe water shortages due to the contamination of major water sources. According to GWCL reports, 60% of the country’s key water bodies are now polluted, with treatment plants struggling to manage turbidity levels as high as 14,000 NTU—well beyond their capacity of 2,000 NTU.
A broad coalition of civil society organizations, labor unions, media outlets, and religious leaders is urging swift government action. Their calls include deploying security forces to remove illegal miners, declaring a state of emergency in the affected areas, and immediately revoking all mining licenses.
“This is a crisis, and the president must act now,” said Dr. Kenneth Ashigbey, Convener of the Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey. “In war, poisoning the enemy’s water is a crime. Here, we are poisoning our own water, and the government is doing nothing.”
Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, President of the Ghana Journalists Association, also pressed for urgent action, urging the military’s deployment and the cancellation of mining permits in protected zones.
Illegal mining has ravaged the country, contaminating water sources, destroying farmland—especially in cocoa-producing regions—and degrading 34 forest reserves. With the lockdown approaching, the government faces increased pressure to address the growing environmental crisis that threatens Ghana’s water supply and agricultural productivity.
Ghanaian police arrested dozens of demonstrators in the capital, Accra, on Thursday during protests over alleged economic mismanagement and the government’s handling of illegal mining, a practice damaging to the environment.
Authorities accused some protesters of attacking officers and vowed to respond firmly. Police said the crowd had gathered unlawfully before clashes erupted.
Democracy Hub, the group behind the planned three-day protest, accused police of targeting peaceful demonstrators. “We’ve communicated with our lawyers to address the police’s actions today. We are calling on everyone, as they plan random arrests,” said Oliver Barker Vormawor, a Democracy Hub convenor.
The demonstrations come just months ahead of Ghana’s December presidential election, with economic concerns at the forefront. The country is still recovering from a severe financial crisis in 2022, during which inflation spiked to 54 percent.
