Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has inaugurated four new rCOMSDEP mining cooperatives in Tarkwa and Bogoso to formalise small-scale mining and create youth jobs.

Published 10 Nov 2026, 07:28 GMT

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Lands Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah presents permits at the launch of mining cooperatives — Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah at the rCOMSDEP cooperatives launch

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Lands and Natural Resources Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has launched four more community mining cooperatives in the Western Region. The Tarkwa and Bogoso schemes aim to tackle illegal mining and provide work for young people.

The launch took place on Monday, November 9, as part of the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development Programme (rCOMSDEP).

The programme organises local youth and artisanal miners into registered community cooperatives, granting them certificates and permits to work within approved concessions as a lawful alternative to illegal small-scale mining, known as galamsey.

The Minerals Commission oversees the schemes alongside the Department of Cooperatives. Members must follow mining and environmental laws, safeguard rivers, forests and farmlands, and meet requirements for safety, transparency and land reclamation.

Presenting the permits alongside Western Regional Minister Joseph Nelson, Buah said forest reserve destruction across Ghana now exceeds the size of 12,000 football fields, warning that wealth generation must not undermine environmental security.

Buah said the success of rCOMSDEP under President John Dramani Mahama depends on host communities, traditional leaders and regulators working together to reject illegal operators and translate lawful mining into lasting local development.

Acting rCOMSDEP National Coordinator Shehu Siddiq said the secretariat will step up registration of additional cooperatives to open formal jobs for young people, while Western Regional Cooperatives Director Akwasi Adjei Bawuah pledged regulatory support.

Tarkwa-Nsuaem MP Issah Taykor and Prestea-Huni Valley MP Robert Wisdom Cudjoe welcomed the schemes as a source of livelihoods for unemployed youth in the two mining hubs and urged beneficiaries to abide by the rules.

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Lands Minister launches four more responsible-mining cooperatives in Tarkwa, Bogoso

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