The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has announced the seizure of 94 excavators and the arrest of 237 individuals, predominantly foreigners, as part of its intensified nationwide campaign against illegal mining activities, commonly referred to as “galamsey”.
Col. Dominic Buah, the Director of Operations, shared this information while delivering an operational update during the NAIMOS Editors’ Forum and quarterly press briefing held at the Press Centre in Accra on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.
“So far, we have seized and secured 94 excavators at our location. Nearly 3,000 changfans have been destroyed. We have made 237 arrests, with the majority being foreigners,” he stated.
Col. Buah elaborated that NAIMOS evaluates the success of its operations through a metric known as the “strike rate,” which currently stands at 87.7 per cent.
“You have observed a strike rate of 87.7. Whenever we conduct field operations and meet one of the key parameters—such as seizures, arrests, and destruction—we consider it a positive outcome. This is what determines the strike rate.
“I must inform you that the number of excavators at the Galamsey sites is significantly decreasing. Previously, we would encounter 10 to 20 excavators, but now, it is rare to find any. The few that are present are already immobilised,” he added.
However, he recognised that illegal miners are continuously adapting their strategies.
“Regrettably, the Galamseyers are quite clever. They consistently devise new methods to repair the excavators,” he remarked.
Col. Buah also revealed that NAIMOS has initiated a partnership with the Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation (GIISDEC) to remove and repurpose scrap metal from contaminated water bodies.
“I want to emphasise that we have commenced collaboration with the Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation regarding the metal components in the waterways. They are currently working on the Ankobra. I visited them last week, and they are collecting all the damaged Changfans’ metal fabrications that are in the waterway,” he stated.
He mentioned that the Secretariat is systematically addressing the impacted regions.
“We move diligently from one water body to another and pack all the scrap. We can put them to good use,” he stated.
Furthermore, NAIMOS is reallocating equipment seized from illegal miners to bolster productive sectors like agriculture.
“Pumping machines, through the Ministry of Agriculture, will be repurposed. As we’ve seen, several of them have been donated to farmers. We want to ensure that they are not sent back to the Galamsey site, but they are repurposed for good use, as well as other equipment,” he said.
He also noted that seized vehicles are being redirected into official operations following the necessary legal procedures.
“Vehicles seized, we push them into the operations once they are formally seized by the attorney general’s department so that we pull the resources together and get this canker eliminated,” he explained.
