Environmental Governance in Gold Mining: The Role of Traditional Institutions in Asutifi North District of Ghana

Abstract

Mining projects in mineral-rich countries have been justified as contributing to economic growth and social well-being. There are environmental, economic, and social problems resulting from mining; therefore, the need for society to pool institutions to form environmental governance systems to manage these effects. It is within these institutions that power is prescribed, legitimated, and controlled. This study examines the roles of traditional authorities in environmental governance in mining in the Asutifi North District of Ghana. A qualitative case study design combining purposive and convenience sampling was used to select 52 respondents from traditional, state, and business institutions and 29 household respondents. The traditional institutions mostly played the role of development agents in their communities. Even though they have not been entirely successful in substituting for the state, they have complemented the state structures by holding the societies together despite daunting economic, political, and environmental challenges they faced.