Non-governmental organisation, Fund for Peace (FFP), is optimistic the use of mercury by players in the artisanal small-scale mining sector in Ghana will soon phase out with the introduction of technology.
Though useful in many areas including mining and the health sector, mercury can have adverse effect on both human health and the environment.
For instance, in 1956, more than 2,000 people died in Japan due to mercury poisoning, an incident which later became known as the Minamata Disease.
Recent reports reveal children born in areas prone to illegal mining in Ghana suffer cognitive impairment and other deformities due to the high use of heavy metals such as mercury used in gold extraction by galamsey operators.
Speaking at a media training for journalists in Accra on Monday (18 September), the programmes director of FFP Wendy Wilson, said the training of over 100 artisanal miners across the country will help promote responsible use of mercury in Ghana.
“As part of the project, we were supposed to conduct a monitoring and evaluation of major indicators to better understand the impact of the project and one of that will be assessing how much mercury has reduced in the work of artisanal and small-scale mining sector.
“Mercury doesn’t only impact those who handle it, it also impacts the community as a whole. We know it can contaminate water bodies and food produce as well,” she said.
Listen to Wendy Wilson in the attached audio clip below:
About FFP
For over 60 years, The Fund for Peace (FFP) has been a world leader in developing practical tools and approaches for reducing conflict.
It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. with offices in Abuja, Nigeria, Accra, Ghana and Tunisia.
With a clear focus on the nexus of human security and economic development, FFP contributes to more peaceful and prosperous societies by engineering smarter methodologies and smarter partnerships.
FFP empowers policy-makers, practitioners, and populations with context-specific, data-driven applications to diagnose risks and vulnerabilities and to develop solutions through collective dialogue.
It has over the past few years been working with some small-scale mining firms in the Western North Region and the Upper East region to showcase best mining practices.
Reporting by Fred Dzakpata in Accra
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