Three suspected illegal miners have been arrested in the Atewa Forest Reserve in Ghana’s Eastern Region as the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) launches Operation Green Shield, a renewed effort to combat galamsey and protect the country’s threatened forest ecosystems. Editorial Ethics & Independence
The arrests were made on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, during a military-backed operation intended to remove illegal mining activities from the reserve and prevent operators from returning after affected areas have been cleared.
The operation marks a significant step in the government’s broader efforts to protect forest reserves, safeguard water resources and strengthen enforcement against illegal mining.
Authorities say the initiative will go beyond arrests and raids by maintaining a security presence in cleared areas until responsibility can be transferred to the appropriate environmental protection agencies.
According to a reports, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, described the destruction of Ghana’s forest reserves through illegal mining as a national emergency.
He warned that the pursuit of financial gain by illegal miners was threatening the environment, water resources and the interests of future generations.
Operation Green Shield Targets Illegal Mining
Operation Green Shield is designed to disrupt illegal mining activities, clear affected areas, secure them against renewed encroachment and gradually transfer routine protection duties to the Forestry Commission.
Speaking during the operation, NAIMOS Director of Operations Colonel K. S. Appiah explained that the strategy would follow a sequence of disruption, clearance, sustained security and transition.
The approach seeks to address a persistent weakness in previous anti-galamsey operations: illegal miners frequently return to locations after enforcement personnel leave. Corrections Policy
Under the proposed arrangement, security teams will maintain a presence in Atewa Forest after initial clearance activities. The Forestry Commission is then expected to deploy forest guards to sustain surveillance and prevent fresh incursions.
The government also plans to establish a security camp within the forest, with support from the Ghana Armed Forces, to strengthen the operation and discourage renewed illegal mining.
A source reported on October 22 that NAIMOS had announced Atewa as the starting point for Operation Green Shield.
The secretariat indicated that specially trained personnel would target priority areas before stabilising them and handing over routine monitoring to the relevant agencies.
Extent of Forest Destruction Raises Concern
During the operation, Mr Buah disclosed that illegal mining had affected 44 of Ghana’s 288 forest reserves, with approximately 8,900 hectares of forest land destroyed.
The affected area is equivalent to about 12,500 football fields, illustrating the scale of environmental damage facing the country.
The minister also warned that restoring degraded forest reserves would require substantial financial resources, potentially running into billions of dollars.
He said illegal miners continued to develop methods to evade restrictions and extend their activities into protected areas, despite measures aimed at controlling the movement of excavators and other heavy equipment.
The government’s response, therefore, is intended to combine enforcement with sustained protection and stronger accountability for those who enable illegal mining.
Mr Buah also urged traditional authorities and metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives not to ignore illegal mining activities within their jurisdictions.
He stressed that protecting forests and water resources requires cooperation among security agencies, local authorities and communities.
Why Atewa Forest Matters
Atewa Forest is an important ecological asset in Ghana, supporting diverse plant and animal life while serving as a watershed for the Birim, Ayensu and Densu river systems.
These water systems are essential to communities and other users who depend on them for domestic, agricultural and economic activities. Damage to the forest can therefore extend beyond the immediate mining sites, affecting water quality, biodiversity and livelihoods.
Illegal mining can remove vegetation, disturb soil structures and introduce sediments and potentially harmful substances into waterways. Once forest ecosystems and water sources are degraded, restoring them can be expensive and take considerable time. Editorial Standards
Protecting Atewa is consequently not only a law-enforcement priority but also a matter of environmental conservation and long-term water security.
Enforcement Must Lead to Lasting Results
The arrest of the three suspects represents an early outcome of Operation Green Shield, but the initiative’s wider success will depend on whether illegal mining can be prevented from returning to cleared locations.
Sustained patrols, effective intelligence gathering, prosecution of suspects and cooperation with local communities will be important to achieving that objective.
Authorities will also need to ensure that enforcement addresses the people and networks financing and organising illegal mining, rather than focusing exclusively on workers found at mining sites.
For now, NAIMOS says the operation will continue as security teams work to clear priority areas and establish conditions for long-term protection.
The challenge will be to turn the initial arrests into lasting environmental gains.
If Operation Green Shield can keep illegal miners out of Atewa Forest and support measurable ecological recovery, it could provide a model for protecting other forest reserves threatened by galamsey across Ghana.