The Lands and Natural Resources Ministry has announced that it will receive four aircraft from the Ghana Armed Forces to help combat illegal mining, also known as galamsey.
According to Deputy Lands Minister George Mireku Duker, the aircraft belonging to the Armed Forces will be useful as new strategies to combat galamsey are developed.
“The aircraft have been around, and they are sitting in Takoradi. You could bear with me that in court we may need some evidence, it is the reason these aircraft are very important in the sector.
“We are hoping to have not less than four of these aircraft,” Mr Duker said in an interview with the media.
In November of last year, Ghana Armed Forces deployed to combat illegal mining in forest reserves and river bodies seized 30 excavators, destroyed four, and immobilized four others on the spot.
This occurred following the relaunch of Operation Halt II on October 11, 2022, with the seizure and destruction occurring between October 11 and October 31.
According to Naval Captain Michael Addo Larbi, Director of Public Relations for the Ghana Armed Forces, during the three-week operation period, the teams destroyed 103 Changfan machines, nine water pumping machines, five generator sets, and two fuel storage tanks.
