Government will amend the Minerals and Mining Act to completely prohibit all mining activities in our forest reserves.
President John Dramani Mahama announced this during his address on his administration’s first 120 days in office in Accra on Tuesday.
He stated that government has launched a major effort against illegal mining, announcing the reclamation of seven forest reserves and a ban on mining in protected areas.
According to the President, his administration submitted a Legislative Instrument to Parliament to remove presidential authority for approving mining in forest reserves.
The President noted that joint security task forces have arrested illegal operators and seized equipment, while seven out of nine targeted reserves have been reclaimed.
He mentioned that the environmental protection extends to water bodies through the new Blue Water Initiative.
“We’re deploying specially trained Blue Water Guards to monitor and protect our rivers from pollution.
“Experts are working to clean already contaminated waterways,†he added.
The President said that the 24-hour economy policy is now operational.
He explained that key institutions like the Passport Office and DVLA are running round-the-clock services.
According to the President, this initiative will create new job opportunities, with 20,000 graduates being placed in businesses adopting extended hours.
In education, Mahama announced that he has fully implemented free first-year tertiary education.
He said “We’ve allocated 452.9 million cedis to cover fees for 156,294 students this academic year,” noting that persons with disabilities will benefit from next year.
The president reported that he hosted a meeting with State Interests and Governance Authority CEOs to address state-owned enterprises reform.
He explained that his administration is implementing performance management systems and conducting studies to identify challenges.
Richard Aniagyei, ISD
