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The Cabinet has temporarily banned the import of excavators for the purpose of combating illegal mining.
The ban comes into effect on May 1, 2019, according to a statement from the Ministry of Transport and signed by the sector minister, Mr. Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, in Accra.
According to the statement, the ban will remain in force until further notice.
He stated that the Cabinet, at its meeting of March 27, 2019, had put the temporary ban in place.
"This became necessary after the government's decision to fight the phenomenon of illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey," the statement said, prompting the public to take note of the directive.
Minister of Transport
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Explain the reason following Online chart In an interview, Asiamah said the government was determined to fight against Galamsey and put in place measures to curb the threat.
Regarding the fate of the excavators shipped and in transit before the ban, Mr. Asiamah said that "importers would be required to provide documentation proving that they had actually imported the excavators before the ban."
Illegal mining, he said, has destroyed some of Ghana's forest cover and water bodies. It is therefore important that all support the government's efforts to fight the danger.
Fight on Galamsey
At the same time, the fight against illegal mining has gained momentum as a result of the government's decision to increase the compensation budget allocated to the Minerals Commission from 28.62 million GH ¢ in 2018 to 63.55 million. million GH ¢.
The increase represents an increase of 122%.
The significant increase in the Commission's compensation budget is due to the need to increase the current workforce in order to effectively combat the illegal mining threat and to ensure the sustainable extraction and management of minerals.
This was brought to light when the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MNLR) met with Parliament's Joint Committee on Lands, Forests and Mining and Energy and discussed its 2019 budget estimates at the second week of February 2019.
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh, informed the committee that about 137 technical staff and 550 mining guards would be recruited by the Minerals Commission in 2019 to help fight "Galamsey ".
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