MONROVIA, LIBERIA-About thirty artisanal miners are benefiting from Smart Mining Training provided by the Ministry of Mines and Energy in Grand Gedeh and Sinoe Counties.

Assistant Mines and Energy Minister for Development and Planning, Johnson Welabo, said:” The training is aimed at exposing them to Smart Techniques and safer methods of mining to safeguard against land degradation.”

Speaking in an ELBC interview Monday, January 18, 2021, Minister Welabo said the training is under the Liberia Forestry Sector Project, a Norwegian Government grant administered by the World Bank.

He said as part of measures to reduce the impact of mining on the environment, the Mines and Energy Ministry has established Mining Cooperatives to collaborate with the Ministry.

Minister Welabo disclosed that a joint task force has already been constituted to arrest illicit miners, a situation that remains a major challenge for the Ministry.

By: Victor Kezelee