abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb

The content is also available in the following languages: 简体中文, 繁體中文

Article

4 Dec 2023

Author:
Maxwell Adombila, Business Day (S. Africa),
Author:
FX168财经集团

Ghana: Trial sheds light on Chinese involvement in widespread illegal mining as court jails illegal gold miner

‘Ghana court jails Chinese national over illegal gold mining’ 4 December 2023

A Ghanaian court has sentenced a Chinese national to prison for illegal gold mining in the West African nation, her lawyer said on Monday, ending a case that started in 2017 and shed light on Chinese involvement in the activity. The court in the capital Accra sentenced Aisha Huang to four-and-a-half years imprisonment and a fine of 48,000 Ghanaian cedis ($4,000) for running an illegal mining operation, Huang’s lawyer Hope Agboado said.

Huang, who could not be reached for comment, initially pleaded not guilty but changed her plea to guilty as the trial progressed. Agboado said he had asked the court to impose a fine and deport her instead of imposing jail time. He and Huang are still deciding whether to appeal, he said. Ghana a gold, oil and cocoa producer, is facing a scourge of illegal mining with Chinese nationals accused of leading some of the operations that have destroyed large areas of forest, polluted water bodies and sometimes encroached on the concessions of large-scale miners.

Ghana’s cocoa regulator Cocobod said in September that about 150,000 tonnes of cocoa were lost due to smuggling and illegal gold mining, locally known as galamsey, on farmlands in the 2022/23 season. Huang was known as the “Galamsey queen” in the Ghanaian press. Several Chinese nationals were brought to court for similar cases in Ghana in 2021 and 2022.

Privacy information

This site uses cookies and other web storage technologies. You can set your privacy choices below. Changes will take effect immediately.

For more information on our use of web storage, please refer to our Data Usage and Cookies Policy

Strictly necessary storage

ON
OFF

Necessary storage enables core site functionality. This site cannot function without it, so it can only be disabled by changing settings in your browser.

Analytics cookie

ON
OFF

When you access our website we use Google Analytics to collect information on your visit. Accepting this cookie will allow us to understand more details about your journey, and improve how we surface information. All analytics information is anonymous and we do not use it to identify you. Google provides a Google Analytics opt-out add on for all popular browsers.

Promotional cookies

ON
OFF

We share news and updates on business and human rights through third party platforms, including social media and search engines. These cookies help us to understand the performance of these promotions.

Your privacy choices for this site

This site uses cookies and other web storage technologies to enhance your experience beyond necessary core functionality.