The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAiMOS) has destroyed an additional 92 changfan machines used for illegal mining on the Tano River at Asemkrom in the Aowin District of the Western North Region.
The operation, conducted on October 18, 2026, followed a previous enforcement exercise on October 15, during which the task force destroyed 61 changfan machines operating on platforms directly on the river.
According to NAiMOS, the earlier operation was triggered by intelligence reports of extensive illegal in-stream mining activities on the Tano River near the Jema-Asekrom Forest Reserve.
During that exercise, the task force retrieved six water-pumping machines and a generator, while three suspected illegal mining operators were arrested and handed over to the Ghana Police Service for further investigations.
However, follow-up river patrols on October 18 revealed that illegal miners had returned to the same location and installed new equipment to resume their activities.
Acting on the fresh intelligence, the NAiMOS task force returned to the site and destroyed 92 additional changfan machines in an operation aimed at disrupting the renewed illegal mining activities.
The latest intervention brings the total number of changfan machines destroyed during the two operations to 153.
NAIMOS said the repeated operations demonstrated its commitment to protecting the country’s water bodies, forest reserves and the wider environment from the destructive effects of illegal mining.
The Secretariat also assured the public that it would sustain surveillance and enforcement operations along major rivers across the country to prevent illegal miners from returning to previously cleared sites.
It reiterated its resolve to intensify efforts to flush out illegal mining operators and safeguard Ghana’s natural resources.
