The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has formalised 11 cooperatives of unlicensed small-scale miners, according to Spokesperson Paa Kwesi Schandorf. The government plans to increase the number to about 40 by the end of the year or early 2027.
Schandorf stated that the government is working to bring more eligible miners into the formal mining sector. The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) will engage communities to prevent miners from returning to illegal mining sites after enforcement operations.
Schandorf attributed the recurrence of illegal mining to "communal complicity", alleging that some community members enable the activities.