President John Dramani Mahama says his government is prepared to commit additional resources to keep soldiers in forest reserves cleared of illegal miners, arguing that security presence is necessary to prevent galamsey operators from returning.
Speaking during his Resetting Ghana Tour of the Upper East Region on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, Mahama said the government had made progress in removing illegal miners from several forest reserves but had encountered a challenge after security operations ended.
He said the government had therefore changed its approach by maintaining military detachments in some cleared areas, a move that would require additional spending on feeding, logistics and other operational needs.
Mahama said the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) had seized excavators and changfang machines and driven illegal miners out of a number of forest reserves.
However, he said earlier attempts to hand cleared areas back to the Forestry Commission created an opportunity for some illegal miners to return.
The President explained that forest guards alone had not been enough to prevent the return of miners, prompting the decision to deploy military personnel after the areas are cleared.
“That means we will have to spend more money to feed the soldiers and provide logistics for them to continue to stay in the forest, but we will not give up the fight,” Mahama said.
The President said the additional expenditure was necessary to protect areas already recovered from illegal mining rather than repeatedly conducting clearance operations.
Mahama credited NAIMOS with a key role in the renewed anti-galamsey campaign.
According to the President, the agency’s operations have involved the seizure of heavy equipment used for illegal mining and the removal of miners from forest reserves.
He said almost 49 forest reserves had been invaded by illegal mining and that government operations had cleared as many of the affected areas as possible.
NAIMOS is an operational unit under the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources responsible for coordinating intelligence-led action against illegal mining, particularly activities affecting water bodies and forest reserves.
The agency reported in March 2026 that it had recorded an 87.7% operational strike rate since July 2025 as part of its intensified crackdown on galamsey.
Mahama’s comments suggest that the government sees sustained security presence as part of the cost of keeping recovered forests protected.
That approach, however, comes with continuing financial and logistical demands. The President acknowledged that keeping soldiers in forest areas means government must provide the resources needed for them to remain operational.
For the government, the immediate priority is to prevent cleared forest reserves from falling back into the hands of illegal miners.
Mahama maintained that the administration would not abandon the fight despite the additional cost, linking the campaign to the protection of Ghana’s forests, water bodies and other natural resources.
