The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has launched a national enforcement campaign, dubbed Operation WATER SHIELD, to protect Ghana’s major rivers, watersheds, and critical water resources from illegal mining.
The initiative marks a transition from isolated raids to a sustained, intelligence-led campaign designed to secure priority river systems from source areas down to downstream communities and water-treatment facilities.
Focus areas for the operation include the Birim, Ankobra, Tano, Bia, Pra, and Offin Rivers, alongside affected sections of the Black and White Volta systems. Upper catchments and strategic source areas whose degradation harms downstream water quality will also receive targeted intervention.
Conducted alongside security and state agencies, the campaign aims to deny miners access to riverbanks, dismantle logistics networks, disrupt underlying financial structures, and establish continuous monitoring to prevent the reoccupation of cleared sites.
“Illegal miners operating on water bodies and riverbanks should expect their operations to be disrupted and their equipment seized, immobilised or otherwise dealt with in accordance with applicable law and established procedures,” NAIMOS warned.
Key targets for seizure and immobilisation include excavators, chanfang machines, water pumps, and dredging equipment. The secretariat emphasised that enforcement will extend beyond riverbanks to target enabling networks, including equipment suppliers, rental companies, and unauthorised fabricators of chanfang machines.
NAIMOS Spokesperson, Paa Kwesi Schandorf, called on traditional authorities, local assemblies, and the public to support the operation by providing credible information on illegal mining activities and their financial backers.
