Illegal gold mining: Minerals Commission chief accuses Chinese nationals
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on 3News
Isaac Tandoh, chief executive of Ghana’s Minerals Commission, calls on Beijing to treat illegal gold mining by its nationals as a bilateral enforcement priority. At a conference in Accra on 10 November, he said Chinese nationals are often at the centre of these operations, according to 3News.
The chief executive of the Minerals Commission, Isaac Tandoh, is calling on the Chinese government to treat illegal gold mining carried out by its nationals in Ghana as a priority for bilateral enforcement. He made these remarks at the Ghana-China mining cooperation conference in Accra on Tuesday, 10 November 2026. According to him, an "unscrupulous minority" is jeopardising a friendship six decades old.
Mr Tandoh noted that, under the Minerals and Mining Act of 2006 (Act 703), licences for artisanal mining are reserved exclusively for Ghanaian citizens. Any foreigner who engages in this activity commits an offence, punishable by 20 to 25 years in prison, followed by deportation. He said several Chinese nationals have been arrested during raids on the Birim and Tano rivers.
Mr Tandoh nevertheless praised Chinese investment in large-scale mining, which has helped make Ghana Africa’s leading gold producer and the sixth largest in the world. He cited the Zijin, Chifeng and Shandong groups, and stressed that Zijin, owner of the Akyem mine for a year, has increased its output by 20% without increasing its workforce.
