A viral video has exposed how illegal small-scale mining (galamsey) is creeping alarmingly close to Akyem-Abomosu STEM Senior High School, sparking urgent concerns for the safety of pupils and staff.
A growing social media storm has focused attention on Akyem-Abomosu in the Eastern Region, after a video emerged showing illegal miners working just metres from the boundary of Abomosu STEM Senior High School (SHS). Community members warn that students are being put in grave danger.
Local authorities say that galamsey operators have increasingly encroached on lands close to the school, setting up pits and machinery in areas that were formerly farmland. According to a joint operation led by Dr. Hannah Louisa Bissiw, Administrator of the Minerals Development Fund, and the Atiwa West District Chief Executive, ten suspected illegal miners were arrested close to the STEM school earlier this year.
The crackdown followed a tragic incident: a seven-year-old boy reportedly drowned in one of the abandoned galamsey pits near Abomosu. The disaster jolted the community, prompting calls for stronger regulation and enforcement.
Residents and school officials fear that the proximity of mining operations could collapse into a full-blown crisis. “These miners are not just digging; they are taking over land close to where our children learn and live,” one local leader said, for whom anonymity was a condition of speaking.
Environmental experts warn that the dangers go beyond immediate physical risk. Galamsey is notorious for polluting rivers, degrading farmland, and leaving behind dangerous voids and unstable land. The Ghana Medical Association recently called for more sustained action, noting that illegal mining continues to “poison rivers, destroy farmlands and betray future generations.”
As pupils return to school, anxiety is rife. Parents and teachers are demanding that the government and security forces intervene decisively. Some are calling for the deployment of taskforce units directly to the school perimeter, while others appeal for urgent land reclamation and pit-filling efforts.
For now, the video serves as a chilling reminder: unchecked galamsey is not just an environmental issue, it is a real threat to the children and institutions of Abomosu.
