Also known as: BWG
Government security initiative deployed to combat illegal mining at water bodies; 2,069 personnel deployed across eight regions as of July 2026.
Verbatim sentences from the source article.
Joy Online
… The operation, which involves the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), the Special Boat Squadron and Blue Water Guards, has focused on dismantling illegal changfa mining operations and securing the river against armed groups protecting illegal miners. …
Lands Minister inspects Ankobra, cites progress in galamsey fightThe Chronicle
… Perhaps even more significant is the deployment of the Blue Water Guards. By May 2026, 2,071 personnel had been trained and deployed nationwide to patrol rivers, identify illegal mining sites and report activities. …
Buah And The Galamsey War: Why Mahama May Have Chosen The Right Man For Ghana’s Toughest BattleJoy Online
The Member of Parliament for Manhyia North and former Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Akwasi Konadu, has called on the government to urgently review the Blue Water Guards programme following allegations of bribery and impersonation involving nine of its members. …
Galamsey: Ghana’s rivers cannot afford another failed experiment – Akwasi KonaduJoy Online
The Member of Parliament for Manhyia North, Akwasi Konadu, has criticised the government’s Blue Water Guards programme, describing it as a failed initiative that is negatively affecting the fight against illegal mining. …
Blue Water Guards programme failing in fight against galamsey – Manhyia North MPJoy Online
Nine members of the Blue Water Guards (BWG) have reportedly been arrested at Manso Adubia in the Ashanti Region over allegations of bribery and impersonation. …
9 Blue Water Guards arrested over alleged bribery, impersonationJoy Online
… in the locality and heavily polluted vital water resources, including the iconic River Tano According to the traditional leaders, state institutions tasked with combating galamsey including the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and the Blue Water Guards …
Tano North chiefs tackle police over ‘routine release’ of arrested illegal minersJoy Online
… According to the chiefs, state institutions mandated to combat illegal mining, including the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and the Blue Water Guards, have failed to halt the continued destruction of the municipality’s forests and water bodies. …
Tano North chiefs petition Mahama over galamsey destruction in River TanoJoy Online
… The government has also deployed about 2,000 Blue Water Guards to provide community-based intelligence and support first-response efforts around affected water bodies. …
Galamsey: ‘Challenge is prosecution, not arrest’ — Lands MinisterJoy Online
… Government has also deployed about 2,000 Blue Water Guards to support intelligence gathering and respond to illegal activities around water bodies. …
Government targets local changfan manufacturers, suppliers in expanded galamsey fightJoy Online
… In addition, about 2,000 Blue Water Guards have been recruited and trained to provide intelligence and support efforts to protect the country’s water bodies from illegal mining activities. …
Ghana loses 8,900 hectares of forest reserves to illegal miningThe Minister for Lands and Natural Resources says the government has removed more than 3,000 illegal mining machines from major river bodies and arrested 237 suspects under Operation Water Shield. The Minister inspected the Ankobra River and attributed progress to a shift from sporadic raids to permanent security deployments.
4 September 2026 · Joy Online →
The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources says the government has removed more than 3,000 illegal mining machines from major river bodies and arrested 237 suspects under Operation Water Shield. The Minister inspected the Ankobra River and attributed progress to a shift from sporadic raids to permanent security deployments.
4 September 2026 · Joy Online →
President John Dramani Mahama has appointed Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah as Minister of Lands and Natural Resources to lead Ghana's battle against galamsey, or illegal mining, which has expanded into sophisticated networks over the last eight years and degraded water bodies and farmlands. Buah is regarded for his personal integrity and reputation for honesty, qualities seen as essential for resisting financial inducements in the fight against powerful mining interests.
2 September 2026 · The Chronicle →
Akwasi Konadu, MP for Manhyia North, has urged the government to review the Blue Water Guards programme following arrests of nine members on allegations of bribery and impersonation at Manso Adubia in Ashanti Region. He warned that compromised enforcement operations could weaken Ghana's anti-galamsey architecture and questioned the expansion of the programme, stating that the government should prioritize measurable environmental outcomes over personnel numbers.
24 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Manhyia North MP Akwasi Konadu has criticized the government's Blue Water Guards programme as a failed initiative in the fight against illegal mining, citing the arrest of nine guards at Manso Adubia over bribery and impersonation allegations as evidence of systemic institutional failure. He called for an independent audit of the programme's recruitment, supervision, and accountability structures.
24 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Nine members of the Blue Water Guards were arrested at Manso Adubia in the Ashanti Region on Friday, August 21, 2026, over allegations that they collected money from individuals while posing as officials of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS). The arrests have prompted authorities to warn BWG personnel against conduct that could undermine public confidence in anti-illegal mining efforts.
23 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Traditional authorities in Tano North Municipality have expressed frustration over the routine release of arrested illegal miners by police, saying law enforcement failure is undermining local efforts to curb galamsey and environmental degradation. Chiefs report that communities captured illegal miners polluting the Tano River and handed them to police, but the detainees were discharged.
22 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Traditional authorities in the Tano North Municipality have appealed to President Mahama to intervene against illegal mining that has devastated forests and polluted the River Tano, saying state institutions including NAIMOS and the Blue Water Guards have failed to halt the destruction.
16 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The government has arrested 258 suspects and seized thousands of mining equipment pieces in its anti-galamsey campaign, but Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah said the real challenge is ensuring prosecutions reach conclusion in court, not the arrests themselves. The ministry is working with the Attorney-General's Department to address difficulties in prosecuting illegal mining cases.
15 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The government is widening its illegal mining enforcement to target businesses and supply networks that manufacture and provide equipment for galamsey operations. As of July 2026, authorities had seized or immobilised 1,724 changfan machines and other equipment, and the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources said this required investigating manufacturers, financiers and suppliers of illegal mining equipment alongside the miners themselves.
14 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Ghana has lost approximately 8,900 hectares of forest reserves to illegal mining, with government operations resulting in 258 arrests and the seizure or immobilisation of 234 excavators, 2,728 pumping machines, and 1,724 changfan machines as of July 2026. The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources identified nine of Ghana's 288 forest reserves as severely affected and acknowledged that successful prosecution remains a major challenge in tackling the problem.
14 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources says government has made significant progress in fighting illegal mining through interventions by NAIMOS and the Blue Water Guards initiative, which have improved water quality and reclaimed forest reserves degraded by galamsey activities.
7 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The Bono Regional Minister warned traditional authorities that those who engage in or aid illegal mining will be prosecuted, and called for community support for the Blue Water Guards to tackle galamsey and logging in the region.
4 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The Bono Regional Minister has warned traditional leaders that any chief or queen who engaged in or supported illegal mining would be prosecuted, and called on communities to report suspected galamsey activities to security agencies.
3 August 2026 · Joy Online →
The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey disputes the government's assertion that the era of impunity is over in illegal mining, arguing that persistent lawlessness across mining hotspots and inconsistent enforcement demonstrate the battle remains unresolved. The coalition acknowledged progress by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources but insists that sustained, uniform enforcement across all regions and against all operators is needed to protect forests, rivers and mining communities.
20 July 2026 · Joy Online →
The Lands and Natural Resources Minister announced the recruitment, training and deployment of 452 additional Blue Water Guards to strengthen water body protection against illegal mining, bringing total personnel across eight regions to 2,069. The government has also registered 4,347 mining equipment units at Tema Port and installed 1,864 tracking devices as part of efforts to strengthen oversight of small-scale mining.
16 July 2026 · Joy Online →
The Convention People's Party has described flooding in Accra on June 29, 2026, as a "self-inflicted" disaster caused by indiscriminate building on waterways and garbage dumping into drainage systems, urging government to deploy the Navy and speedboats for rescue and to cut electricity in flooded areas to prevent electrocution.
30 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Ghana's Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has submitted a new mining bill to Cabinet that would transfer licensing approval powers from central agencies like the EPA and Minerals Commission to newly established District Mining Committees, giving local communities greater involvement in mining governance and licensing decisions.
8 June 2026 · Joy Online →
The Board Chairman of Ahantaman Community Bank has called on government to declare a state of emergency on illegal mining, warning that continued destruction of water bodies threatens national development and public health. He cited the ineffectiveness of existing interventions and alleged that some chiefs and politicians are complicit in galamsey activities.
25 May 2026 · Business & Financial Times →
Ghana's National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) conducted a pre-dawn raid at Sanfo Adiam in Amansie East District, Ashanti Region, on 24 May 2026, arresting two Chinese nationals operating an illegal gold mining enclave. The operators had diverted sections of the Dankai River into an artificial dam for unlawful extraction; several Ghanaian workers fled during the operation, with one spotted carrying a pump-action firearm.
25 May 2026 · Joy Online →
The Board Chairman of Ahantaman Community Bank has called on government to declare a state of emergency on galamsey, warning that continued destruction of water bodies threatens national development and public health. He cited water pollution as widespread across the country and alleged that some traditional leaders and influential persons are complicit in illegal mining, hampering enforcement efforts.
25 May 2026 · Business & Financial Times →
The government's Blue Water Guards initiative is producing positive results in fighting illegal mining along Ghana's rivers and streams, with the Lands and Natural Resources Minister stating that almost every district where guards have been deployed has witnessed improvement in water systems. A total of 452 newly trained guards graduated at the Naval Base at Ezinlibo in the Western Region.
16 May 2026 · Joy Online →
The government has graduated another batch of Blue Water Guards at the Western Naval Command as part of efforts to strengthen the fight against illegal mining and protect water bodies. The initiative, launched in 2025, aims to train about 2,000 young people nationwide to monitor rivers, report illegal mining activities, and educate communities on environmental protection; 1,617 trained guards have already been deployed across eight regions.
15 May 2026 · Joy Online →
Operatives of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat arrested three Chinese nationals during a riverine operation targeting illegal mining along the Tano River in Amenfi West District on 14 May 2026. The suspects were found overseeing miners operating Changfan machines on floating platforms and were handed over to the Ghana Immigration Service.
15 May 2026 · Joy Online →
Personnel of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat and Blue Water Guards carried out riverine patrols along the Ankobra River on May 11, 2026, disrupting illegal mining at Dominase in the Western Region. The team destroyed six changfan machines that suspects were reinstalling on an abandoned floating platform.
12 May 2026 · Joy Online →
Personnel of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), working with the Blue Water Guards, destroyed machines and disrupted illegal mining activities along the Ankobra River in the Western Region's Nzema East district. The operation targeted galamsey hotspots from Gwira Banso to Tumentu, dismantling approximately 20 changfan machines at one site and five modified boats fitted with an estimated 10 changfan machines at another.
8 May 2026 · Business & Financial Times →
Personnel from the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat and Blue Water Guards conducted sustained patrols in Nzema East District, Western Region, to combat illegal mining activities along the Ankobra River. During operations from Gwira Banso to Tumentu, the team intercepted about 20 individuals engaged in illegal mining, destroyed 20 Changfan machines and water hoses in use.
7 May 2026 · Joy Online →
Personnel of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), working with the Blue Water Guards, have destroyed several machines and disrupted illegal mining activities along the Ankobra River in the Nzema East District of the Western Region. The operation targeted galamsey sites at Gwira Banso and Eshiem, dismantling approximately 20 changfan machines and other equipment used to draw water directly into the river.
5 May 2026 · Business & Financial Times →
The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and Blue Water Guards arrested eight suspected illegal miners and seized four excavators and two motorbikes during a night operation at Mpatasie and Odaho in the Amansie West District, Ashanti Region.
3 May 2026 · Joy Online →
The Deputy Director of A Rocha Ghana says the government's Blue Water Guards initiative, launched to protect water bodies from illegal mining pollution, is not delivering expected results and has limited visible impact. He urged a reassessment of the programme, arguing resources could be better deployed to established institutions like the Police and Minerals Commission.
25 April 2026 · Joy Online →
A Rocha Ghana's deputy director says the country's efforts against illegal mining are failing due to poor coordination among state agencies, despite appearing organized on paper. Fieldwork in affected regions shows worsening conditions, forest destruction, and water quality degradation continue despite government interventions.
25 April 2026 · Joy Online →