By Mabel Esinam Awagah and Portia Sarpong
The author of the book State Capture in the Militarized Fight Against Illegal Small-Scale Mining in Ghana, Dr. Jasper Abembia Ayelazuno, says Ghana’s failure to win the fight against galamsey is not due to the resilience of illegal miners, but rather the result of state institutions being compromised by powerful vested interests.
Speaking at the launch of the book in Accra, Dr. Ayelazuno called for a critical examination of the factors enabling state capture and urged the implementation of robust reforms to protect national institutions from elite influence.
Dr. Ayelazuno stressed the urgent need for a thorough reevaluation of governance structures within the mining sector to safeguard national resources.
“This book was born out of an intellectually and politically puzzling reality: Ghana, widely regarded as a model democratic state in Africa, has failed to effectively govern its artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector,” he said.
“This failure has given rise to a chaotic, destructive, and worsening situation of criminal mining, known as galamsey.”
He noted that despite years of government interventions, including the deployment of soldiers, enactment of new mining regulations, seizure and destruction of excavators, and supposed political commitment to combat galamsey—illegal mining continues to devastate Ghana’s environment.
“Ghana’s rivers — including the Pra, Ankobra, Offin, Densu, Birim, and Tano, remain contaminated with mercury and other toxic chemicals, the result of unchecked illegal mining that continues to threaten the health, livelihoods, and water security of millions,” he said.
According to Dr. Ayelazuno, state capture goes beyond weak institutions or limited capacity.
“It involves the strategic hijacking and repurposing of state institutions, not their collapse, but their deliberate reorientation to serve elite interests,” he said.
“A clear example is the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), which is internationally recognised for its professionalism and operational discipline. Yet under conditions of state capture, even such capable institutions are politically restrained, selectively deployed, or deliberately redirected to serve the narrow goals of the mining-power elite.”
The book, co-authored by Dr. Maxwell Akansina Aziabah (deceased), offers a critical analysis of the structural and political dynamics undermining Ghana’s fight against illegal mining.
It argues that the state’s inability to curb galamsey is less about the strength of the illegal miners and more about how state mechanisms are manipulated by political and economic elites. Regulatory systems meant to protect the environment, the authors suggest, have instead become tools of exploitation.
The findings are considered vital for policymakers, researchers, and stakeholders seeking to understand and address the complex nature of Ghana’s ongoing battle against galamsey.
