The government has formally annulled Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, which had empowered the President to permit mining operations within the country’s forest reserves.
The repeal follows the passage into law of the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Revocation Instrument, 2025, which matured on Wednesday, December 10, after being laid before Parliament by the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah.
Officials say the decision underscores government’s renewed commitment to tackling illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
L.I. 2462 had long been the subject of sharp criticism from environmental campaigners and the wider public, who argued that it worsened the destructive impact of galamsey by opening forest reserves to industrial mining.
Civil society and environmental groups maintained that the instrument undermined conservation efforts and posed a serious threat to the country’s fragile forest ecosystems.
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