The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, stormed multiple illegal mining sites across the Eastern Region, dismantling equipment, razing makeshift camps, and striking another heavy blow against the galamsey menace.

This latest operation forms part of NAIMOS’ renewed commitment to protect the nation’s rivers, forests, and farmlands from widespread degradation caused by illegal mining activities.

The task force’s first stop was Old Abirem, where Officers discovered an active illegal mining site. Three locals were found on the premises and taken in for questioning, a move that led the team to another site just a few kilometers away.

The team uncovered four excavators, each bearing fresh signs of operation.

To prevent the machines from ever being used again, the task force disabled them by removing their control boards and monitors before destroying other mining materials, including two heavy-duty water pumps, fuel drums, and makeshift shelters.

The NAIMOS team further moved on to Kyenkyenku in the Birim North District, where miners were spotted working dangerously close to a public road. The sight of the task force sent the miners fleeing into the bush, leaving behind an excavator and two containers of diesel.

The task force also descended on a suspected illegal mining zone within the Oboho Forest Reserve in the Ayensuano District.

When the team arrived, the site was deserted, but four excavators were found parked in nearby villages, raising suspicions about foreign involvement in the illicit trade.

In yet another disturbing discovery, the NAIMOS patrol uncovered mining pits carved into cocoa plantations at Old Abirem.

According to the Secretariat, these coordinated operations are part of a long-term campaign to reclaim Ghana’s natural resources from illegal miners especially those destroying forest reserves and waterways.

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