ACCRA - Ghana is making a strategy to deal with illegal mining and logging which poses a grave environmental, health and security risk to the country, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources Mike Allen Hammah said here on Wednesday.

Speaking at a workshop to develop a framework for artisanal and small-scale mining in Ghana, Hammah said it is the government policy to develop the industry to become as efficient as its large- scale counterpart.

The policy is to ensure that the industry becomes truly indigenous and self-reliant, with most of its needs serviced by local companies, he said.

It is in line with this policy that the government, with support from development partners, is implementing the Natural Resources and Environmental Governance (NREG) program with one major objective of reducing, if not eliminating completely, the practice of illegal mining.

Under the program, several areas are being geologically explored to find suitable grounds for small-scale miners.

Hammah told the seminar that improving the small-scale mining sub-sector requires the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders.

He urged all of them to put in more efforts to come out with a workable strategy to improve small-scale mining and reduce illegal mining in Ghana.

Chief Executive of the Minerals Commission Ben Aryee promised that his commission would persist with government policy to restore sanity in the operation of the small-scale mining program.

The program, which was successfully started in early 1990's, went out of control and degenerated into chaos and illegality.

"We are confident that all our efforts and those of the national security will sooner than later bring success and more benefits to the country's economy through increased mineral production from organized and lawful small-scale operations," he added.

Ghana is endowed with mineral deposits such as gold, diamond, manganese and bauxite.

There are also unexploited economic deposits of iron ore, limestone, kaolin, feldspar and silica sands.

Illegal mining has been rampant in the West African country, leading to serious environmental degradation and pollution.

The activities of the illegal activities, local called "galamsey," are widespread in the eastern and southwestern parts of the country, where there are deposits of minerals such as gold, diamond and bauxite.

It is estimated that over one million people are involved directly in artisanal and small-scale mining and more than another million people benefit directly or indirectly from this activity in the West African nation.

Last year, gold production from the activities of small-scale gold mining from both legal and illegal sources totaled approximately 800,000 ounces, representing 23 percent of the total gold production in Ghana.