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Mr. Zhu Jing (right), Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embbady of the Republic of China, speaking at the IEA Roundtable. Image: INNOCENT K. OWUSU
The Chinese Embbady in Ghana said that the destruction caused by illegal mining activities (galamsey) in the country should be attributed to Ghanaians and not to Chinese nationals.
"The badertion that illegal mining is caused by the Chinese is a misconception, because the root cause of the threat lies in Ghana, and any solution to this problem therefore also lies in Ghana."
The deputy chief of mission of the Chinese Embbady, Mr. Zhu Jing, said Monday at a round table organized by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) in Accra on the way forward to combat the illegal mining threat, said no A Chinese national could engage in illegal mining activities without local collaborators.
"The illegal Chinese miners could not have come from China to Ghana without the facilitation, support and shelter of local people, so Ghana is at the root of the problem," he said. .
participants
During the roundtable, Professor Sulemana Al-Hbadan, Professor in the Department of Mines and Engineering of the University of Mines and Technology (UMAT), including the President of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey , had presentations, accused the Chinese to fuel the threat.
Personalities such as the deputy of Asutifi South and former Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Collins Dauda, former Minister of State for the Presidency of Public-Private Partnership, Mr. Rashid Pelpuo , and the member of Klortey Korle's Parliament, Dr. Zanetor Rawlings, was present.
Chairman of the Board of Minerals Commission, MSK. Boafo and Omanhene from the Essikado Traditional Area, Nana Kobina Nketsia V, were among the other dignitaries present at the event.
The knot
While admitting that many Chinese were illegally involved, Jing pointed out that it was incumbent on Ghana to crack down on both foreign galamseyers and their local collaborators.
"Illegal mining has caused terrible water and land damage in Ghana and appropriate measures need to be put in place to address it.I was badigned to Ghana there are about four After visiting some mining sites, I was shocked by what I saw.
"China is able to support any initiative to uproot illegal mining and we expect the Government of Ghana to fix the problem in accordance with laws and regulations, which should not exclude illegal Chinese miners "We support the fact that we should punish illegal Chinese minors using the law, but we should not do it and put aside their Ghanaian collaborators," he said.
He added that the Chinese had already begun the process of repatriating some illegal miners in order to maintain good bilateral relations with Ghana.
"The relationship between Ghana and China goes beyond illegal mining because China invests in many sectors of the country, including health care, education and agriculture. ", did he declare.
He pointed out that it was important that Ghana create employment opportunities for local people who were pulling out of illegal mining to make sure they did not have to. They would not come back.
Way forward
Mr. Ashigbey felt that the solution of the galamsey problem required a decentralization of the licensing system, so that local leaders and bademblies were placed at the center of the process.
He added that the fight against illegal mining should be part of the criteria for measuring the performance of metropolitan, municipal and district executive directors (MMDCE).
"I am of the opinion that the commitment to fight Galamsey must be part of the performance of the MMDCEs and that local people must be involved in the management of their own resources; that is the way forward. ", did he declare.
He urged the government to ensure that the Multisectoral Integrated Mining Project (MMIP), developed with a road map to bring together mining sector elements, is implemented for the mining sector.
Mr. Ashigbey also called for public institutions such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Minerals Commission to have adequate logistics and human resources to contribute to the environment. 39, cleaning up the mining sector at the base.
For his part, Professor Sulemana emphasized the need to decentralize the administration of mines to make it more efficient.
He said the excessive centralization of licensing in Ghana made the process too cumbersome.
He also added that it was important to integrate Chiefs and MMDCEs with the management of mining activities to ensure the return of common sense in the sector.
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