Sand Mining And Local Livelihoods In The Ga South Municipality And Gomoa East District, Ghana

Abstract

Globally, investment in housing and urban infrastructure to match the pace of urbanisation has led to high volumes of unsustainable sand extraction. In Ghana, farming and other land-based livelihoods account for the majority of the jobs held by locals in the sand mining regions. The main objective of the study was to assess how terrestrial sand mining in the Ga South Municipality and Gomoa East District affects local household livelihoods. A mixed-methods approach was used to gather quantitative data from 278 household heads and qualitative data from 32 key informants, including landowners, truck drivers, sand contractors, local government authorities, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Minerals Commission, and Focus Group Discussions with women and youth groups. Descriptive statistics, the chi-square test of independence, Kruskal-Wallis and the Median test were employed to analyse the quantitative data, while the qualitative data were transcribed and analysed thematically. The study revealed the following findings: first, sand mining was widespread and largely illegally undertaken by mainly non-natives of the mining communities, with the most common interest among the actors being monetary. Second, the negative impact of terrestrial sand mining on local livelihoods was more experienced by most of the local residents than its positive effects. Third, the rules governing sand mining were inadequately applied by the regulatory agencies. It is recommended for policymakers to resource the regulatory agencies to perform their mandate, while strict sanctions should be applied to illegal sand miners. The Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority, local government authorities, and landowners should work together to zone the study communities to ensure that land is reserved for traditional livelihoods.