Vulnerability to infectious diseases and risk reduction measures among galamsey gold mining communities in Ghana: A narrative review

Abstract

Galamsey is an artisanal and small-scale gold mining practice that is illegal in Ghana. Miners, their families and communities are at an increased risk of infectious diseases due to the short-and long-term health and environmental effects of galamsey activities. Infectious diseases are caused by pathogens such as bacteria and viruses and can spread from person to person directly or indirectly. Some of the mechanisms of the increased risk of infectious diseases associated with Galamsey include poor sanitation in mining communities, leading to the proliferation of gastrointestinal and diarrhoeal diseases such as cholera and typhoid, and alterations in the environment and natural ecosystems that enhance the transmission of emerging/re-emerging diseases and other priority diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, rabies etc. The legislative instrument that guides mining activities in Ghana, the Minerals and Mining Act 2006 (Act 703), as well as other minerals and mining laws/policies, provide a framework for mining which protects the environment and human health. Enforcement of these by regulators and law enforcement actors is key to reducing these infectious disease vulnerabilities in mining communities. Health promotion and sensitisation of miners and members of the mining communities will help prevent and mitigate the health risks posed by galamsey mining activities.