The Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Tong Defa has rejected widespread perceptions that Chinese nationals are primarily responsible for illegal small-scale mining, commonly known as galamsey.
Addressing the media on Friday, June 20, Ambassador Defa argued that the issue of illegal mining in Ghana did not originate from China and that Chinese nationals involved are often migrant workers brought in by Ghanaians
According to him, Chinese individuals do not have the legal capacity to acquire mining licenses on their own, and are typically invited into the country by Ghanaians who facilitate their participation in the illegal mining trade.
He further called for a national, long-term policy framework to address illegal mining and its environmental consequences, stressing that reactive, short-term measures will not solve the issue.
“I do not know the reason why, when people say galamsey, they normally equate that to the Chinese. But actually, it is not Chinese. The issue does not originate from the Chinese. I mean, you can see those mining, the Chinese cannot get the license. It is the Ghanaian people who draw Chinese people over here, and the Chinese who are caught red-handed are just migrant workers who have come here and make a living.
“All the sectors, all the policies, we should work for a long-term policy on how to solve the problem to eliminate this pollution in waterbodies and in the forests. We should find a way to solve this problem in this country. To my understanding, you can never eliminate those small mines. These small mines have illegal activities involved in them,” he said.
