The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Samuel A. Jinapor has directed that all excavators should be registered within their various locations with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
He said the owners of the excavators have within seven days of this notice, starting from Monday October 24, excluding weekends and statutory holidays, to register the equipment.
Mr. Jinapor who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Damongo warned that any excavator not registered in accordance with this directive, whether found at a mining site or any other operational site or elsewhere, shall be seized and the necessary legal steps taken to confiscate same to the State.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Minister pointed out that the deadline for the registration of all excavators in the country is by close of business on Wednesday, 2nd November, 2022.
“Notice is hereby given the general public, particularly owners operators and/or users as well as MMDAs to ensure strict compliance with these directives.
“An owner, operator and/or user of an excavator shall, at the time of registration, specify the purpose for which the excavator is being used or to be used and the area where the excavator is being used or will be used, as the case may be”, he stressed in a statement.
The registration of excavators is part of efforts to fight against illegal small-scale mining popularly known as ‘galamsey’ in the country.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Jinapor assured Ghanaians, “will continue to take the necessary measures to protect our natural environment, particularly, water bodies, forests and lands, in a transparent and sustainable manner, anchored on integrity”.
