The Chief of Kpongu in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region, Naa Seidu Braimah has expressed worry at the rate at which male children abandon classes to engage in illegal mining popularly known as “galamsey” in the region.

A worried Naa Braimah said illegal mining was detrimental to the health and development of children since it interfered with their education and cautioned the youth to stay away from the act and focus on their education.

The chief stated this on the sidelines of a meeting organised by the Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana (PPAG) on “ending child marriage and teenage pregnancies” in the area.

“These days, most of the boys skip school on certain days just to join their colleagues to engage in the illegal practice which is a threat to their health,” he said.

Naa Braimah explained that boys who indulged in illegal mining at tender ages turned out obstinate, making it difficult for their parents to reprimand them which eventually could lead to waywardness due to their early exposure to money.

“Some of the girls follow these galamsey boys because of the little money they give them and end up getting pregnant for these boys who deny responsibility because they are not ready to be fathers,” he said.

He stated that with the discovery of gold in commercial quantities in the region, it was relevant that stakeholders engaged in serious dialogue on how to dissuade the youth from accessing gold mining sites to the disadvantage of their education.

“Apart from the fact that parents are unable to discipline their children who join the galamsey business, there are other consequences such as deaths due to pits caving in and the tendency of the youth to learn social vices like smoking and alcoholism at the galamsey sites,” he stressed.

The chief called on parents to discuss with their young male children the dangers associated with illegal mining to make it unattractive to them.

He further encouraged the boys to identify role models in the region and aspire to be like such persons in future.

“I want to urge parents to work harder to provide for their wards and desist from taking money from them when they return from the mining operations,” he added.

From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Kpongu