The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) has signed agreements with the Ghana Armed Forces and the Forestry Commission to roll out nationwide land reclamation, rehabilitation, and reforestation projects valued at GH¢27.9 million.
The initiative, which is fully funded by GoldBod, is aimed at restoring degraded lands affected by illegal mining activities across the country, beginning with the rehabilitation of 50 hectares of the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve.
Chief Executive Officer of GoldBod, Sammy Gyamfi, said the programme will combine the technical capacity of military engineers with forestry expertise to deliver large-scale land restoration, afforestation, and ecosystem recovery.
He explained that the Ghana Army Engineer Regiment, through the Ministry of Defence, has been engaged to support key civil engineering works such as pit filling, land reshaping, grading, compaction and site stabilisation in designated mining-impacted areas.
According to him, the initiative forms part of a broader national reclamation and environmental restoration programme designed to address widespread land degradation caused by illegal mining.
“The Gold Board has initiated a national programme for the reclamation and restoration of degraded mining lands and has engaged the Ghana Army Engineer Regiment… to undertake reclamation works, pit filling, grading, land reshaping, compaction and site stabilisation works within designated areas,” he said.
He added that the decision to begin the programme at the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve was informed by the severity of destruction observed during site visits involving officials from the Forestry Commission and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
“We were taken aback by what we saw at Tano Nimiri. The very rich vegetation we once had has been completely destroyed by illegal mining. That is why we have decided to start our national reclamation and environmental restoration programme there,” he added.
