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SMALL-SCALE
GOLD MINING LAW, 1989 (PNDCL 218)
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Section
PART I —REGISTRATION AND LICENSING
OF SMALL-SCALE GOLD MINERS
1. Licensing of Small-scale Gold
Mining.
2. Qualification of Applicants for
Small-scale gold Mining Licence.
3. Conditions for the Grant of a
Licence.
4. Duration of a Licence.
5. Areas Covered by Licence.
6. Revocation of Licences.
7. Licence not Transferable.
8. District Centres and their
Functions.
9. Registration of Prospective
Licensees.
10. Small-scale Gold Mining
Committees.
PART II—OPERATIONS OF SMALL-SCALE
GOLD MINERS
11. Operations of Small-scale Gold
Miners
12. Compensation for use of Land.
13. Use of Explosives Prohibited.
14. Purchase of Mercury.
15. Exemptions from Income Tax and
Royalties.
PART III—LICENCE TO DEAL IN GOLD
AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
16. Licence to Buy and Deal in
Gold.
17. Sale of Gold.
18. Sale of Jewellery, Etc.
19. Offences and Punishment.
20. Regulations.
21. Interpretation.
IN pursuance of the Provisional
National Defence Council
(Establishment) Proclamation,
1981, this Law is hereby made:
PART I —REGISTRATION AND LICENSING
OF SMALL-SCALE GOLD MINERS
Section 1—Licensing of Small-scale
Gold Mining.
(1) Notwithstanding any law to the
contrary, no person shall engage
in or undertake any small-scale
gold mining operation unless there
is in existence in respect of such
mining operation a licence granted
by the Secretary for Lands and
Natural Resources or by an officer
authorised in that behalf by the
Secretary.
(2) An application for a licence
under this section shall be made
in such forms as the Secretary may
direct, to the relevant District
Centre of the designated area and
shall be accompanied by such fee
as the Secretary may prescribe.
Section 2—Qualification of
Applicants for Small-scale gold
Mining Licence.
Subject to subsections (1) and (2)
of section 75 of the Minerals and
Mining Law, 1986 (PNDCL 153) no
licence for small-scale gold
mining operation shall be granted
to —
(a) any person who is not a
citizen of Ghana;
(b) any person who has not
attained the age of eighteen
years; or
(c) any person who is not
registered by the District Centre
in the designated area under
subsection (1) of section 9 of
this Law.
Section 3—Conditions for the Grant
of a Licence.
Except otherwise provided in this
Law, a licence granted by the
Secretary shall be subject to such
conditions as may be specified
therein.
Section 4—Duration of a Licence.
(1) A licence granted under
section 1 of this Law to any
person or group of persons other
than a co-operative society shall
be for a period not exceeding
three years from the date of issue
in the first instance and may be
renewed thereafter for such
further period as the Secretary
may determine.
(2) A licence granted to a
co-operative society shall have
effect for a period not exceeding
five years from the date of issue
and may be renewed thereafter for
such further period as the
Secretary may determine.
(3) The Secretary may by
legislative instrument prescribe
such fees as may be paid for the
grant and renewal of a licence
under this Law.
Section 5—Areas Covered by
Licence.
The size of the area in respect of
which a licence may be granted
under this Law shall not exceed —
(a) three acres in the case of a
grant to any one person or group
of persons not exceeding four in
number;
(b) five acres in the case of a
grant to any group of persons not
exceeding nine in number; and
(c) twenty-five acres in the case
of a grant to a co-operative
society of ten or more persons.
Section 6—Revocation of Licences.
The Secretary may at any time
revoke a licence granted under
this Law where —
(a) he is satisfied that the
licensee has contravened or failed
to comply with any of the terms
and conditions of the licence or
any requirement of this Law or of
the Minerals and Mining Law; 1986
(PNDCL 153) applicable to him;
(b) the licensee is convicted of
any offence relating to the
smuggling or illegal sale or
dealing in gold, or
(c) he is satisfied that it is in
the public interest to do so.
Section 7—Licence not
Transferable.
A
licence granted under this law
shall not be transferable.
Section 8—District Centres and
their Functions.
(1) The Minerals Commission shall
for the purposes of monitoring
small-scale gold mining operations
establish in an area designated as
a small-scale gold mining
operation area under subsection
(1) of section 77 of the Minerals
and Mining Law, 1986 (PNDCL 153),
a Centre to be known as the
District Small-scale Gold Mining
Centre (hereafter in this Law
referred to as the ("District
Centre").
(2) A District Centre shall in
respect of its designated area
have the following functions:
(a) compile a register of all
small-scale gold miners and
prospective small-scale gold
miners specifying such particulars
as may be determined by the
Secretary;
(b) supervise and monitor the
operation and activities of the
small-scale gold miners and
prospective small-scale gold
miners;
(c) advise and provide such
training facilities and assistance
as may be necessary for effective
and efficient small-scale gold
mining operations;
(d) submit to the Minerals
Commission in such form and at
such intervals as may be directed
by the Commission, reports or
other documents and information on
small-scale gold mining activities
within the District.
Section 9—Registration of
Prospective Licensees.
(1) Any person engaged in or
wishing to undertake any type of
small-scale gold mining operation
shall register with the District
Centre of the designated area
where he operates or intends to
operate.
(2) The District Centre shall on
the registration of any person
under subsection (1) of this
section issue a Certificate of
Registration to such person.
(3) No person shall be granted a
licence under subsection (1) of
section 1 unless such person has
been registered under subsection
(1) of this section.
Section 10—Small-scale Gold Mining
Committees.
(1) There shall be established in
every designated area a
Small-scale Gold Mining Committee
(hereafter referred to in this Law
as "the Committee").
(2) The Committee shall consist
of the following members:
(a) the District Secretary or his
representative who shall be the
Chairman of the Committee;
(b) the officer-in-charge of the
District Centre;
(c) a representative of the Town
Development and Planning Committee
of the district;
(d) two representatives of the
C.D.R. in the district.
(3) The Committee shall assist the
District Centre to effectively
monitor, promote and develop
small-scale gold mining operations
in the designated area.
(4) The members of the Committee
shall hold office for such periods
and on such terms and conditions
as the Secretary may determine.
PART II—OPERATIONS OF SMALL-SCALE
GOLD MINERS
Section 11—Operations of
Small-scale Gold Miners
A
person licensed to mine gold under
this Law may win, mine and produce
gold by any effective and
efficient method and shall in his
operations observe good mining
practices, health and safety rules
and pay due regard to the
protection of the environment.
Section 12—Compensation for use of
Land.
Where a licence is granted in a
designated area to any person
other than the owner of the land,
the licensee shall pay to the
owner of the land such
compensation for the use of the
land as the Secretary may in
consultation with the Minerals
Commission and the Lands Valuation
Board determine.
Section 13—Use of Explosives
Prohibited.
No small-scale gold miner shall
use any explosive in his
operations.
Section 14—Purchase of Mercury.
A
small-scale gold miner may
purchase from any authorised
mercury dealer such quantities of
mercury as may be reasonably
necessary for the purposes of his
mining operations.
Section 15—Exemptions from Income
Tax and Royalties.
For a period of three years from
the date of the coming into force
of this Law, all persons engaged
in small-scale gold mining
operations shall be exempted from
the payment of income tax and
royalties in respect of such
mining operations.
PART III—LICENCE TO DEAL IN GOLD
AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Section 16—Licence to Buy and Deal
in Gold.
Without prejudice to any enactment
empowering any person or body to
purchase and deal in gold, the
Secretary may in consultation with
the Minerals Commission in
writing, license such persons as
he may consider fit, to buy and
deal in such types and forms of
gold and under such terms and
conditions as may be specified in
the licence.
Section 17—Sale of Gold.
(1) Any licensed small-scale gold
miner or any person in possession
of gold may sell such gold in his
possession to authorised buyers
only.
(2) A person shall be presumed to
be lawfully in possession of gold
until the contrary is proved.
Section 18—Sale of Jewellery, Etc.
Nothing contained in this Law or
in any other enactment shall be
construed as precluding any person
from dealing with or disposing of
his gold jewellery, gold artifact
or gold coin to authorised dealers
or to any person whatsoever.
Section 19—Offences and
Punishment.
(1) Any person who buys or sells
gold without a licence granted
under this law or without a valid
authority granted under an
enactment for the time being in
force shall be guilty of an
offence and shall on conviction be
liable to a fine not exceeding ¢5
million or to imprisonment for a
term not exceeding five years or
to both.
(2) Any person who —
(a) without a licence granted by
the Secretary undertakes any
small-scale gold mining operation
contrary to subsection (1) of
section 1 of this Law; or
(b) acts in contravention of any
other provision of this Law in
respect of which an offence has
not been prescribed, shall be
guilty of an offence and shall on
conviction be liable to a fine not
exceeding ¢2 million or to
imprisonment for a term not
exceeding 2 years or to both.
(3) A court before which any
person is convicted under this Law
may in addition to any penalty
that it may impose order the
forfeiture to the State of the
gold or other mineral in respect
of which the offence was
committed.
(4) Where an alien is convicted of
an offence under this Law he shall
after paying the fine or serving
any imprisonment imposed on him,
be liable to deportation under
section 13 of the Aliens Act, 1963
(Act 160).
Section 20—Regulations.
The Secretary may on the advice on
the Minerals Commission, and the
Chief Inspector of Mines make such
regulations as may be necessary
for the effective implementation
of this Law.
Section 21—Interpretation.
In this Law unless the context
otherwise requires—
"authorised buyer" means a person
authorised by the Secretary to buy
gold;
"citizen of Ghana" has the same
meaning as provided in section 84
(1) of the Minerals and Mining
Law, 1986 (PNDCL 153) but does not
include a public Corporation;
"designated area" means an area
designated as a small-scale
mineral operation area by the
Secretary by a notice published in
the Gazette.
"gold" means gold dust, gold
bullion, retorted gold, gold ore,
gold amalgam, gold alloy,
precipitates containing gold,
slag, concentrates, tailings and
residue containing gold;
"licensed small-scale gold miner"
means a person licensed under this
Law to win and mine gold;
"Secretary" means the PNDC
Secretary responsible for Lands
and Natural Resources;
"small-scale gold mining
operation" means the mining of
gold by any method not involving
substantial expenditure by an
individual or group of persons not
exceeding nine in number or by a
co-operative society made up of
ten or more persons.
Made this 19th day of April, 1989.
FLT.-LT. JERRY JOHN RAWLINGS
Chairman of the Provisional
National Defence Council
Date of Gazette Notification: 2nd
June, 1989
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