At least 23 people, including 11 children, have died after falling into abandoned illegal mining pits across the Ashanti Region, Ashanti Regional Minister Dr Frank Amoakohene has disclosed.
According to the Minister, 19 bodies have so far been retrieved, while efforts are ongoing to recover four others still trapped underground.
Dr Amoakohene disclosed this on Monday, August 24, 2026, during the commissioning of the new ultramodern office complex of the Minerals Commission in Kumasi.
He said most of the victims were residents who fell into uncovered mining pits while using routes to their farms, exposing the dangers posed by abandoned galamsey sites in communities across the region.
He expressed particular concern about the 11 children who lost their lives, stressing that their deaths had deprived them of their future.
The Minister said the Regional Security Council, with support from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, has begun an exercise to reclaim and cover abandoned illegal mining pits in affected communities.
He urged stakeholders to support efforts to secure abandoned mining sites, particularly along routes frequently used by residents to access their farms, to prevent further loss of lives.
