The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has called on the National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme (NAELP) to strengthen its initiatives and deepen its focus on sustainable mining practices.
He made this call during a visit to the NAELP office on Tuesday in Accra to familiarize himself with the activities of the project unit.
The Minister emphasized the need for illegal miners to engage in responsible and sustainable mining practices, highlighting this as a key step in fulfilling NAELP’s mandate to address illegalities in the mining sector through the provision of alternative livelihoods.
He encouraged the programme’s leadership to enhance the value of their alternative livelihood offerings and to leverage their success stories to attract long-term support from development partners.
Mr. Buah reaffirmed the government’s commitment to resolving the challenges faced by NAELP, including inadequate funding and logistics, asserting that NAELP is an important part of the Ministry.
The Minister encouraged the management and staff of the project unit to share their achievements with partners to boost confidence and secure sponsorship.
On his part, the National Coordinator of NAELP, Mr. Frank Asare, shared insights into the programme’s activities, detailing the extent of land reclamation and the number of direct and indirect jobs generated through the initiative.
He stated the major challenges they are facing, including inadequate logistics and limited funding, and expressed optimism that the government would address these concerns.
Judith Twumwaa, ISD
