The Africa Union’s Ghana’s Ambassadors have expressed grave fear that in the next five decades water will become a luxury in Ghana and Africa for that matter, if those bankrolling illegal mining are not chased and arrested by the state.
With water becoming a privilege for a few but a luxury for the majority, the dignitaries lamented the lack of strong political will by governments to ensure that aquatic bodies are heavily protected from devastations by human activities.
They were speaking at this year’s African Day celebration and Leadership Summit 2026 at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center (KAIPTC) at Teshie, a suburb of Accra, yesterday.
The Day, organised by the Pan Africa Union Agenda 2063 Diplomatic Mission, in collaboration with International Association of World Peace Advocates, was marked on the theme: ‘Assuring sustainable water, technology, peace and security for agenda 2063’.
Not discounting the adverse consequences of climate change, which is also contributing to the poor access to safe, clean and reliable water, the dignitaries held a strong view that wealthy politicians and business tycoons who clandestinely sponsor illegal miners cannot go unmentioned.
Referencing data for 2025/2026 by the World Health Organisation, which says over four million people in sub-Saharan Africa lack access to potable drinking water, while over seven million lack access to proper sanitation, the Ambassadors said governments must not see sustainably clean water supply as a charity to their people.
The Speakers at the summit were Ambassador Samuel Ben Owusu, a UN Eminent Peace Ambassador and Climate Change Advocate, Professor Laud Mensah from the Local Government Ministry, Professor Wazi Apoh, a full Professor of Archaeology, Anthropology and Heritage Studies, Ambassador Victor Anang, Special Emissary Political Affairs in Africa and representative of the National Chief Imam.
They collectively observed that should governments take ages to decisively tackle the imbalance, which is a threat to peace and security, they feared that Ghana and Africa would shamefully be spending a huge percentage of their annual budgets to be importing potable water for both domestic and industrial use.
To begin with safeguarding all aquatic bodies, the dignitaries urged governments to chase the bankrollers of illegal miners.
Again, they encouraged governments and leadership to continuously engage the youth in the fight as the latter stand ready to support their leadership who are ready to demonstrate commitment to helping change their lives by providing them with their basic needs.
Ghana’s fight against illegal mining, the Speakers maintained, must be intensified and unabated to safeguard the sustainable lives Africa needs to keep the continent blue and green.
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