Dr. Henry Kwabena Kokofu, the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has dismissed reports of possible mining activities within the Kakum National Park, and other protected areas across the country.
Dr. Kokofu expressed his concerns during an interview On UTV on November 13, 2023, stating, "I have tasked my Chief Executive Director, who is in charge of the operation, to go to the Minerals Commission and our office in the Central Region and provide me with feedback.
“The Minerals Commission didn't even agree to that, and for us at the Environmental Protection Agency, we won't sit aloof. If we don't take care, people can illegally go and mine there without any license. We are calling for security coordination and beefing up security in all the national parks, including Kakum," he said.
Recent reports suggested that High Street Ghana Limited, a mining company, was in the process of leasing parts of Kakum National Park for mining activities.
This prompted backlash from various civil society organizations (CSOs) in Ghana, who argue that such a move is unacceptable.
High Street Ghana Limited's application for a mining license in Kakum National Park is currently at the validation stage with the Minerals Commission.
The company's proposal covers approximately 24% of the park, according to information obtained during a stakeholder engagement on the new Regulation on Mining in Ghana's Forest Reserves (LI 2462) on November 9.
Mustapha Seidu, the Director of the Nature and Development Foundation, raised a red flag during the engagement, warning that the failure to reconsider and potentially scrap the legislative instrument (LI 2462) would lead to widespread destruction of the country's forests.
"As we speak, there are 14 more applications under different stages of consideration by the Minerals Commission, including an application by High Street Ghana Limited to mine in the Kakum National Park," Seidu stated.
"If, in less than one year of coming into force of LI 2462, we are seeing this massive legal destruction of our forest, we can imagine what will happen in the next five years or decade."
Meanwhile, the Minerals Commission has disclosed that it rejected an application for mining in the Kakum National Park by a company named High Street Ghana Limited.
In a press release issued on Sunday, November 12, 2023, the Minerals Commission clarified that it turned down the application by the company.
The commission stated that it is aware of the importance of the festival and will therefore not sanction any mining activity in the forest.
The Minerals Commission disclosed in the report that it has deleted the application of the company from its online mining cadaster.
Read the full statement below
The attention of the Minerals Commission has been drawn to publications on social media that some Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the country have vehemently kicked against the attempt by a mining firm to mine in the Kakum National Park in the Central Region.
According to the CSOs, the move follows an application by the High Street Ghana Limited to the Minerals Commission for a license to mine in the Kakum National Park.
The Commission wishes to inform the CSOs and the public that the application by Hight Street Mining Company Limited was rejected and therefore cannot be processed or considered whatsoever.
Consequently, the Commission has deleted the application From the online mining cadastre.
The Commission wishes to assure the public that no mineral right whether for prospecting or mining shall be considered or granted in the Kakum National Park.
AM/SARA
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Dr. Henry Kwabena Kokofu, the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency