President John Mahama
The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Ghana, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to declare a state of emergency in galamsey-affected areas to safeguard the nation’s water bodies.
According to the group, galamsey may not be contagious as COVID-19 but its long-term effects on health, the environment, and livelihoods are equally destructive.
FIDA is the latest body to call on the President to declare a state of emergency on galamsey to avert the devasting effect of illegal mining in the country.
Christian Council of Ghana, the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference as well as some civil society organisations (CSOs) have called on government to take decisive measures in the fight against illegal mining in recent months.
The President, during an encounter with the press on September 10, 2025, rebutted calls on him to declare a state of emergency, indicating that his government had not yet exhausted measures in tackling the menace.
Last week, he told CSOs that he will not hesitate to declare a state of emergency if the National Security Council advises him that the time had come to do so.
FIDA Ghana Disagrees
FIDA Ghana, in an open letter signed by its President, Gloria Ofori Boadu, added its voice to calls for the institution of state of emergency in mining areas to protect the environment and individuals, especially women, who it says bear the heaviest burden.
“Women who fetch water for households, farm food crops, process and trade in food and fish, or work and sell along the agricultural and gold value chains are directly endangered by the toxic chemicals used in small-scale mining,” the letter noted.
It said anecdotal evidence suggests similar adverse effect on fertility, women’s reproductive health and foetal and child cognitive development.
“Mercury and cyanide contamination threaten not only our health but also the very food security of the nation. Needless to say, we are all at risk,” it said.
FIDA Ghana is therefore, calling on President Mahama to uphold the constitutional and international right to water—recognised by the United Nations in 2010 and enshrined in Article 33(5) of the 1992 Constitution—by declaring a state of emergency in galamsey-affected areas to safeguard our water bodies.
It is also calling for the immediate repeal of L.I. 2462 to permanently prohibit mining activities in forest reserves.
Again, the group wants the Ministry of Health and its agencies to urgently provide clear, nationwide guidance on how citizens can protect themselves from exposure to heavy metals in food and water.
It further called on the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) to take decisive action to identify, warn against, ban, recall, and destroy local produce as well as bottled and sachet water found to be contaminated with heavy metals.
Finally, FIDA Ghana urged the Ministry of Agriculture, through its extension officers to conduct a comprehensive mapping of farming areas across Ghana, highlighting regions with elevated levels of heavy metals.
“This must include full disclosure of associated health risks and provide the public with reliable information on how to access safe food sources,” it added.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak