Martin Ayisi Moved to the Lands Ministry
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Minerals Commission, Martin Kwaku Ayisi, has been reassigned to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, according to a report by 3news.com on August 27, 2025. Government sources confirmed the move but did not disclose the reasons behind the decision.
The reassignment follows months of sustained pressure on the government to remove Ayisi from office. In April 2025, the National Concerned Small-Scale Miners Association, Ghana (NCSSMAG), openly criticised the Commission’s leadership under Ayisi, accusing it of failing to address the country’s persistent illegal mining challenge, known locally as galamsey.
The Association’s President, Michael Kwadwo Peprah, said the Commission’s “actions and inactions” had worsened land and water degradation, urging sweeping reforms to strengthen the government’s anti-galamsey campaign.
It is not yet clear what specific role Ayisi will play at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources following his reassignment.
Ayisi, a lawyer with over two decades of expertise in international environmental law, mining, and energy policy, has spent much of his career with the Minerals Commission. He previously served as a Senior Legal Officer before returning in 2017 as Deputy CEO for Promotion and Development.
He was appointed Acting CEO in March 2021, succeeding Addae Antwi-Boasiako, and later confirmed as substantive CEO. He held the position until his reassignment on August 27, 2025.