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The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has refuted claims that over 1,400 mining licences have been issued by the Ministry from 2022 to date.

His clarification follows reports suggesting that while only 150 licences were granted between 1988 and November 2022, more than 1,400 licences have allegedly been approved since 2022.

In an interview with Citi FM on October 8, 2024, Jinapor firmly rejected these allegations, describing them as inaccurate. He stated, “Straight away, that is false,” and emphasised that the number of licences issued between 1988 and 2022 is far greater than those reportedly issued in the period from 2022 to the present.

Mr Jinapor elaborated on the mining licence approval process, explaining that it is a time-consuming and intricate procedure.

He noted that approving a single small-scale mining application requires six separate signatures, which significantly slows down the process.

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