Government has pledged to take findings and recommendations of the Health and Safety Committee of the Appiatse explosion very seriously and pursue them to the latter.
Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Samuel A. Jinapor who gave the assurance added that the recommendations are going to be implemented to ensure that the Appiatse incident does not reoccur.
A total of 13 people died in the Appiatse explosion near Bogoso in the Western Region when a truck conveying explosives for a mining company exploded.
The incident also reduced the town of Appiatse to rubble, injuring scores and rendering hundreds homeless.
Mr. Jinapor who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Damongo said considering the expertise of the Committee chair and members, he is confident the findings of the report provided will indeed be an invaluable asset.
“What we want to ensure is a mining sector that is fit for purpose, which is serving the people, contributing to the national economy and which is safe so that we do not have a repeat of what occurred at Appiatse and that’s exactly what we want to forestall”, he stressed.
Mr. Jinapor these on Monday when he received the findings and recommendations of the Prof. Amankwah led five-member Committee to review the Health and Safety regime for the Mining industry.
The report, the minister stressed, will guide matters to do with the health and safety regime of the mining sector in Ghana.
Mr Jinapor reiterated the commitment of the President Akufo-Addo government to be utterly transparent in the management of the Lands and Natural Resources of the country, and assured the Ministry will continue to serve the nation in the context of the best standards of integrity and fidelity.
Government, he maintained, will thoroughly study the report and pursue to the latter, the findings and recommendations provided by the team.
“I have no doubt that if not all, most of the findings and recommendations that have been made by this Committee will be taken on board and implemented”, he said.
Mr. Jinapor on behalf of Government expressed his profound gratitude to the Committee for an extensive work done.
“We couldn’t have assembled a better team than we did giving the expertise the five of you bring to the table. Expertise of diverse areas with enormous experience from your various fields. We are very grateful for such an extensive work done”, he reiterated.
Chairman of the Committee, Prof. Richard Amankwah who doubles as Vice Chancellor of the George Grant University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) disclosed that they sent out 20 letters to various entities and professional bodies to source out information that aided their investigative work.
He added that to get the job done, they also engaged certain captains in the industry who gave presentations to the Committee on explosives, fire suppression, and systems to track the movement of explosives in the country.
The findings and recommendations, he said, are broadly appropriate, however considering the dynamic nature of the mining industry, it will be suitable if these findings are reconsidered every now and then and tweaked to bring it up to speed to the changing trends of the industry.
Prof. Amankwah noted that the recommendations they have made in various respects will make the regulatory framework more amenable in managing the health and safety dimensions of the mining sector.
The Lands Minister set up this committee on 7th February, 2022 following the Appiatse explosion, which claimed 13 lives and destroyed the entire Appiatse community.
The other members of the Committee are Prof. Grace Ofori-Sarpong, a professor representing the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences; Ms. Effie Oppong-Fosu, an associate representing the Ghana Bar Association; Mr. Benjamin Aryee, a former Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission, and Mr. Kwesi Enyan, a former Inspector of Mines, and a former Managing Director of AngloGold Ashanti.
