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Dr. Kenneth Ashigbey, Convener of the Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey, has voiced his disappointment with President John Mahama’s decision to amend rather than fully repeal Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, which governs mining activities in forest reserves.
The law in question—officially known as the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Regulations 2022—currently allows mining in forest reserves if such activity is considered to be in the national interest. However, recent discussions have focused on amending the legislation, particularly removing the president’s power to issue mining permits for these protected areas.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Monday, April 7, Dr. Ashigbey expressed frustration, arguing that the president had made a clear promise to repeal the law entirely, not just amend it.
“This is a president who gave a promise to repeal the e-levy law and not in 100 days—in 82 days he was able to convert that manifesto promise into the budget statement, convert it into a bill and sign and gazette it in record time,” he recalled, referencing Mahama’s swift move to abolish the controversial e-levy.
Dr. Ashigbey criticised the amendment as a superficial fix, stating that it only strips the president of the ability to approve mining in globally significant biodiversity zones. According to him, this step protects just 10% of Ghana’s forests while leaving other harmful provisions of the law untouched.
“If the president went ahead with his promise that he had given us, what he would have been targeting is to save about 60% of the forest,” he said, underscoring the broader environmental risks that remain under the current framework.
Calling for bolder action, Ashigbey urged President Mahama to stay true to his original pledge and repeal the entire legislation, stressing that more robust protections are necessary to safeguard Ghana’s forests and biodiversity from the devastating effects of mining.
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