President John Dramani Mahama has announced the establishment of specialized financial courts to prosecute illegal miners and individuals cited in Auditor-General reports, marking a significant escalation in the government’s fight against environmental crimes and financial misconduct.
The announcement came following a high-level meeting on Monday with Acting Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, Attorney General and Minister for Justice Dr. Dominic Ayine, and Auditor-General Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu. The meeting produced recommendations that could reshape how Ghana handles environmental crimes and fiscal infractions.
The specialized courts will hold circuit adjudications across the country, bringing justice closer to communities affected by illegal mining activities. This mobile court system represents a departure from traditional proceedings that often suffer from lengthy delays and inadequate follow-through.
The initiative addresses a longstanding weakness in Ghana’s enforcement regime. Environmental activists and forestry officials have complained that although the Forestry Commission made over 800 arrests in two years, only about 20 were prosecuted, sending weak signals about the government’s commitment to fighting galamsey.
In a complementary measure, the Auditor-General will continue to “disallow” illegal expenditures and “surcharge” persons responsible for them in line with Article 187(7)(b) of the Constitution. This constitutional provision has rarely been utilized effectively, allowing financial irregularities to persist without consequence.
The meeting included several key figures beyond the principal trio. Supreme Court Judge Justice Gabriel Pwamang, Judicial Secretary Musah Ahmed, Chief of Staff Julius Debrah, Legal Counsel to the President Marietta Brew, Presidential Advisor Joyce Bawah Mogtari, and Minister of State for Government Communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu all participated in the discussions.
Ghana’s illegal mining crisis has reached alarming proportions, threatening water security and public health across multiple regions. Attorney General Dr. Ayine revealed that approximately 600 illegal miners are currently being prosecuted across 65 active dockets, with some cases involving more than 10 suspects each. One particularly large case in the Western North Region involves 28 individuals.
The specialized courts will handle three main categories: audit infractions and surcharges, galamsey prosecutions, and related environmental crimes. This integrated approach acknowledges the interconnected nature of financial crimes and environmental destruction, particularly where public officials have allegedly facilitated illegal mining through corruption or negligence.
However, the success of these courts will depend heavily on judicial capacity and commitment. Stakeholders have emphasized the need to build capacity among prosecutors and judges to understand environmental crimes and their impact on ecology, public health, and humanity, ensuring that sentences reflect the severity of these offenses.
The timing of this announcement is significant. President Mahama has made fighting galamsey a central policy priority since returning to office in January 2025. His administration has already implemented several measures, including banning foreigners from trading gold inside Ghana, establishing the state regulator GoldBod, and introducing new permit requirements for excavator imports.
The specialized courts initiative complements broader government efforts announced earlier this year. Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed stated in June that environmental courts would hold accountable those who deliberately destroy Ghana’s environment, whether through illegal logging or other activities, warning that the law would be applied without discrimination regardless of nationality.
The galamsey crisis has devastated Ghana’s water bodies, contaminated agricultural land, and threatened the cocoa industry, the country’s second-largest foreign exchange earner. Communities across the Ashanti, Eastern, and Western regions have experienced water supply disruptions due to severe pollution from mercury and cyanide used in illegal mining operations.
Legal provisions already exist for harsh penalties. Section 99 of the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 provides for fines between 10,000 and 15,000 penalty units (GH₵120,000 to GH₵180,000) and imprisonment of 15 to 25 years for Ghanaians engaged in illegal mining. However, enforcement has been notoriously weak, with many cases languishing in the regular court system.
The specialized courts represent President Mahama’s response to mounting public frustration over environmental destruction and financial mismanagement. Whether they succeed will depend on adequate staffing, proper resourcing, genuine judicial independence, and sustained political will to prosecute offenders regardless of their connections or status.
