Public health leaders and traditional authorities have issued a strong call for Ghana’s health professionals to take a frontline role in combating illegal mining (galamsey) and its escalating impact on national health, warning that the country faces a growing environmental and public health emergency if the trend continues unchecked.
The call was made at Ensign Global University’s 10th Congregation in Kpong, Eastern Region, where the institution held its first graduation ceremony since attaining Presidential Charter status in December 2024. The event conferred Master of Public Health (MPH) degrees on the 2024 cohort, but the focus quickly shifted from celebration to urgent national advocacy.
The Konor of the Manya Krobo Traditional Area and President of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs, His Majesty Nene Sakite II, delivered the strongest caution yet on the public health implications of galamsey. He said illegal mining has moved beyond an environmental concern and is now a major threat to population health, with poisonous chemicals infiltrating key water bodies and food systems across the country.
“The contaminated water is gradually seeping through and could sooner or later reach major rivers like the Volta. No Ghanaian is safe if illegal mining continues at this pace,” he warned. He stressed that polluted rivers, poisoned vegetables and contaminated soil could fuel widespread illnesses, chronic diseases and long-term generational health problems.
Nene Sakite II challenged the graduates—newly trained public health professionals—to treat the fight against galamsey as part of their professional duty. He said their expertise in environmental health, disease prevention and community engagement places them at the forefront of helping Ghana reverse the devastating trend.
“As public health professionals, you have the responsibility to confront these injustices. If you do not act, the nation will suffer the consequences of the greed of others,” he said.
Key stakeholders at the event echoed his concerns. Delivering the keynote address, Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosa, former Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, urged the graduates to approach the galamsey crisis with professional discipline, evidence-based strategy and ethical commitment. He noted that the health sector can no longer remain silent while environmental degradation fuels sickness, inadequate food safety and polluted drinking water.
“Professionalism must guide how we respond to illegal mining and other threats. Public health demands courage, scientific rigour and accountability,” Prof. Akosa stressed.
President of Ensign Global University, Prof. Stephen C. Alder, also highlighted the critical need for public health leadership in addressing complex national challenges. He said the university’s newly acquired charter status strengthens its resolve to train experts capable of tackling environmental health issues, emerging diseases, health inequities and human trafficking.
Throughout the event, speakers repeatedly emphasized that Ghana’s public health workers—community health officers, environmental health officers, epidemiologists, health educators, and researchers—must intensify advocacy and technical intervention in the fight against galamsey.
The ceremony also acknowledged outstanding graduates, including Nana Akosua Amoah, who won the Best Graduating Student and Best Thesis Awards for her study on emergency department injuries at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
But even as the achievements of the graduates were celebrated, the message from the podium remained clear: Ghana’s battle against illegal mining is no longer only a fight for the environment—it is a fight for the nation’s health.
Public health professionals, the speakers insisted, must now take center stage in documenting the harm, educating communities, shaping policy, and driving the national response.
Ensign Global University, established in 2014 and now operating as a fully chartered institution, says it is committed to producing the next generation of professionals capable of leading this charge and safeguarding Ghana’s future.
