TITLE:
Formalisation of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Ghana: A Critical Review of Key Challenges and the Way Forward
AUTHORS:
Akuba Bezeba Yalle
KEYWORDS:
Artisanal and Small Scale Mining, Formalisation, Geological Data, Mining Technology, Sustainability
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.14 No.7,
July
31,
2026
ABSTRACT: The aim of donor circles and governments for a couple of decades now has been to formalise the Artisanal and Small Scale Mining (ASM) sector in a bid to optimise the benefits of the sector and to minimise the negative effects. ASM which occurs in many developing countries has been identified to be a significant contributor to economic growth, a huge employment generator and a contributor to rural development. In addition, ASM operations provide an alternative for mining smaller deposits which otherwise would have been uneconomical mining utilising Large Scale Mining (LSM) operations. Even though the sector presents significant economic benefits, the problem of the operations mostly occurring in the informal spaces with the associated consequences of illegalities, low recovery, environmental degradation and safety hazards has bedeviled the sector. In Ghana, illegal mining operations continue to pose serious environmental threats profoundly water pollution and safety threats to inhabitants. The government and various stakeholders have made several attempts to formalise the sector in a bid to control the negative impacts but such attempts have yielded little results. This study evaluates the formalisation challenges regarding ASM in Ghana and outlines the way forward. The study identified inadequate geological information, inappropriate mining methods, bureaucratic licensing and permitting procedure, poor monitoring and technological assistance, conflict of interest on the part of the actors of the implementation process and political interferences as the major challenges regarding formalisation. The study recommends incentivization of the formalisation process, governments investment in geological studies and ASM operations, inclusive policy making and implementation process, collaboration amongst various stakeholders and promotion of research in improved ASM methods and technology as key strategies to address the challenges.