The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, says at least 23 people, including 11 children, have lost their lives after falling into abandoned illegal mining pits across the region.
According to him, 19 bodies have so far been retrieved, while efforts are ongoing to recover the remaining four victims still trapped underground.
Dr Amoakohene disclosed this on Monday, August 24, 2026, at the commissioning of the new ultramodern office complex of the Minerals Commission in Kumasi.
He said many of the victims were residents who fell into uncovered mining pits while using routes to their farms, highlighting the dangers posed by abandoned galamsey sites in affected communities.
“Twenty-three lives have been lost only because they were on their way to their farms and fell into pits that were left uncovered by miners within the various areas. Only 19 have been recovered from the pits; the remaining four we have not been able to recover,” he said.
Dr Amoakohene expressed particular concern over the number of children among the victims, saying their deaths had deprived them of their future.
“Eleven of them are children whose future has been cut short because someone, in his quest for money, left a pit uncovered within some of these areas that lead to farmlands,” he added.
He said the Regional Security Council, with support from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, has begun efforts to reclaim and cover abandoned illegal mining pits in affected communities.
He said the exercise is currently ongoing and urged stakeholders to support measures aimed at securing abandoned mining sites and protecting residents from further danger.
Dr Amoakohene stressed the need for urgent action, particularly in communities where residents regularly use routes leading to their farms and may unknowingly encounter dangerous, uncovered pits.
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