President John Dramani Mahama has announced a plan to allocate GH¢400 million in the 2027 Budget for land reclamation and environmental protection activities.
He said half of the allocation, GH¢200 million, will be used to reclaim 5,000 acres of land degraded by illegal mining [galamsey], while the remaining GH¢200 million will support the activities of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Blue Water Guards.
Speaking at the opening of the Mining in Motion 2026 Summit in Accra on Monday, October 19, 2026, President Mahama said the reclamation exercise would begin in 2027.
“The planned reclamation exercise comes amid ongoing efforts by the government and mining companies to restore lands degraded by illegal mining. The damage caused by the activity nationwide is estimated at 12,000 acres,” President Mahama said.
On October 14, 2026, the government and the Asantehene launched the Jimi Land Reclamation and River Watercourse Rehabilitation Project to restore 153 hectares of degraded land upstream of the Jimi Dam in the Ashanti Region.
At Monday’s summit, President Mahama also cited efforts by mining companies and state institutions to reclaim degraded lands.
He said Newmont had reclaimed nearly 800 acres of mined-out land and planted useful crops on the restored areas.
He also said the Ghana Gold Board had awarded the Ghana Armed Forces a contract to reclaim 253 acres in the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve, where work was ongoing.
On measures to curb illegal mining in forest reserves, the President said illegal miners had encroached on 48 of the country’s 288 forest reserves.
He explained that nine of the affected reserves had previously been designated as red zones because armed miners prevented forest guards from entering them.
According to him, all nine reserves had since been cleared of illegal miners and were being prepared for reclamation.
President Mahama also reported that authorities had confiscated more than 8,200 items associated with illegal mining, including 135 excavators, and recovered nearly 200 firearms.
He said 6,060 excavators had been registered and detained at the ports, while 2,059 had been fitted with tracking devices to help authorities monitor their movements and use.
The President added that 11 cooperatives had been trained in improved mining methods and were operational.
He said the Ghana Gold Board was also financing small-scale artisanal mining using technology intended to reduce environmental destruction.
President Mahama also announced a reforestation initiative being undertaken by the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation in partnership with the REDD+ programme. The initiative is expected to cover several parts of the country, including the Savannah regions.