Survival now, sustainability later: the emerging artisanal mining and the dying agricultural livelihoods in the Akyem Abuakwa traditional area of Ghana

Clifford Amoako (), Kwasi Kwafo Adarkwa () and Kofi Appiah Koranteng ()
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Clifford Amoako: KNUST
Kwasi Kwafo Adarkwa: KNUST
Kofi Appiah Koranteng: KNUST

Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, 2023, vol. 25, issue 2, No 26, 1645-1666

Abstract: Abstract In many mining communities in the developing world, agricultural livelihoods are gradually being lost. These livelihood changes are fueled by emerging foreign investments into the local mining sector; unclear regulatory frameworks and mining laws; as well as perceived compromised regulatory systems currently in operation. With continuous foreign investments and complexities of local institutions, these local mining industries may eventually lessen the importance of agricultural livelihoods. This paper explores the perceived and actual effects of artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) of gold on farming and food production in the Akyem Abuakwa traditional area in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Adopting a case approach, the study used multiple qualitative and participatory methods, including interviews of selected farmers, small-scale miners and opinion leaders; focus group discussions with affected farmers and ASM workers; institutional consultations and field visits to affected farms and mining sites were all used in gathering empirical evidence. The paper brings out three revelations. Firstly, there are unclear power dynamics that seek to marginalize farmers from their farms and turn them into gold mining sites. Secondly, the paper reveals that illegal small-scale gold mining activities that take place with the knowledge of farmers but sometimes supported by traditional and customary power structures. Lastly, some farmers are forced into illegal and/or ASM by declining them some essential agricultural and financial gains they are supposed to receive. The paper makes a case for the effective regulation of ASM activities and a re-examination of the declining agricultural industry, especially in the study area and in Ghana at large.

Keywords: Artisanal mining; Local livelihoods; Survival; Sustainability; Abuakwa traditional area; Ghana (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s10668-022-02114-y

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