Africa’s top gold producer is frustrated by the ongoing presence of Chinese nationals mining illegally in West Africa, experts say.
JOHANNESBURG—Thousands of Chinese citizens remain in Ghana to mine gold illegally, despite a crackdown by authorities in Africa’s largest producer of the precious metal, according to law enforcement agencies in the capital, Accra.
They say the illegal miners appear to be taking advantage of the record-high gold price, which hit $3,500 in April, with much of the illicit metal being smuggled back to China.
Organized crime groups, sometimes headed by what appear to be Chinese businesspeople, are flooding Ghana with sophisticated machinery to mine gold at scales never seen before in some areas, resulting in widespread environmental damage and fueling unemployment, according to one expert who recently spoke to The Epoch Times.
According to several analysts, Chinese involvement in illegal mining in Ghana and across Africa reveals Beijing’s real motive for its increasingly strong presence on the continent: to exploit Africa’s natural resources.
With Ghana’s police now often arresting Chinese citizens accused of stealing gold, relations between President John Mahama’s administration and Beijing are strained.
Ghanaian officials have said the Chinese regime isn’t doing enough to prevent its nationals from committing crimes in one of West Africa’s strongest economies.
But China’s ambassador in Ghana is accusing locals of “galamsey,” as it’s known in the region, or small-scale illegal gold mining, and of drawing Chinese workers to Africa.
“The Chinese who are getting arrested are migrant workers who have come here to make a living,” Chinese Ambassador Tong Defa told The Epoch Times.
Grace Ansah-Akrofi, director of the Ghana Police Service’s Public Affairs, has a different view.
“While there are cases like those mentioned by the ambassador, it’s a bit far-fetched to say that it’s Ghanaian masterminds who are importing Chinese to commit crimes,” she told The Epoch Times. “We have our own people who are desperate enough to commit crimes.
“Our criminals are not going to call on [the] Chinese to do their work. It doesn’t make sense.”
