Ken Ashigbey, the Convener of the Anti-Galamsey Coalition, has raised concerns about the newly launched Blue Water Initiative, questioning whether deploying Blue Water Guards is truly the best step at this moment. Speaking in an interview on Citi FM on  Monday, March 17, Mr.Ashigbey expressed skepticism over the urgency of the initiative, arguing that more foundational work should come first.

While Mr.Ashigbey acknowledged that the Blue Water Initiative has its merits, he pointed out that the immediate priority should be reclaiming polluted water bodies and restoring forest reserves that have been ravaged by illegal mining activities. “This is a nice-to-have, but is it the thing we need to do immediately? I would say no,” Mr. Ashigbey said, stressing that the focus should be on environmental restoration before deploying additional personnel.

The initiative, unveiled by Minister for Lands and Natural Resources Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, aims to restore contaminated water bodies. As part of the program, 460 Blue Water Guards have been deployed for round-the-clock monitoring, with plans to scale the number to 2,000 nationwide. However, Mr.Ashigbey questioned whether the guards were adequately trained to handle the complex and entrenched challenges of illegal mining. “What training have these people received? How long have they been trained?” he asked, casting doubt on their ability to effectively address the crisis.

Mr. Ashigbey’s comments come at a time when the fight against illegal mining—locally known as “galamsey”—remains a critical issue in Ghana. While the Blue Water Initiative is an effort to address one aspect of the environmental degradation caused by galamsey, Ashigbey insists that tackling the root causes, like forest destruction and pollution, must come first if any real progress is to be made.

Source:TheDotNews