Ada salt miners regain economic survival after The Fourth Estate’s Investigations

Hundreds of artisanal salt miners in Ada have reclaimed portions of the Songor Lagoon that Electrochem Ghana Limited (EGL) previously claimed as part of its concession.

The miners say they are finally free from years of “harassment, indiscriminate shootings, illegal arrests, and economic hardship” caused by the controversial 15-year lease granted to EGL under the erstwhile Akufo-Addo government.

For the first time in years, over 30 communities around the lagoon have resumed their traditional salt mining activities. Families torn apart due to lost livelihoods are reuniting as men who fled have return home.

The renewed access follows the natural crystallization of salt in the lagoon during the dry season, allowing unrestricted mining.

Community members tell The Fourth Estate they are now freely mining salt in the areas outside Electrochem’s designated factory concession, also known as the defunct Vaccum Salt /Songor Salt Project/ Factory.

According to the residents, they were unfairly denied community mining in the lagoon since 2021 when Electrochem claimed ownership of the entire lagoon.

“We are mining salt, and we are very happy,” says Amakie Anim, a salt miner. “This is what we have been fighting for because our ancestors left it for us. Electrochem should also be at Vaccum and work there.”

The return to normalcy follows The Fourth Estate’s investigative reports, Death and Brutality: The Battle for West Africa’s Largest Salt Deposit, which exposed human rights abuses linked to the lease.

Since the new government took over in January 2025, residents say security personnel who once enforced Electrochem’s claim and harassed artisanal salt miners, have disappeared, bringing back their livelihood.

“We don’t know if the security forces have been permanently withdrawn or if they will return, but for now and since the new government took over, there is absolute peace here in Ada and our homes,” Emmanuel Adabang, a salt miner and resident of Toflokpo, a community that has suffered series of raids over the years, says. “The entire lagoon has crystallized into salt, and everyone is mining without fear or anxiety anymore.”

Community leaders, however, want a permanent resolution. Vice-Chairman of the Ada Songor Lagoon Association (ASLA), Nene Dadebom Anim II, urged President John Mahama to act decisively.

“We call on His Excellency the President [John Dramani Mahama] to take a decisive action to resolve the Songor Lagoon issue once and for all. We want the Masterplan [Blue-print for salt mining in Ghana] to work,” Nene Anim II who is also the chief of Toflokpo-Salom states.

He also demanded justice for victims of alleged brutality linked to the dispute.

“There must be an investigation into the brutalities and killings of our people, including Korletey Agormeda, and Noah Dameh, who was incarcerated and later died. Others are still living with bullet wounds today, and the perpetrators must be brought to justice.”

The chief has invited people from across Ghana and beyond to resume salt mining at the lagoon, insisting the resource has always been open to all.

“The Songor Lagoon has been for everyone—regardless of where you come from, whether Ghanaian or foreigner. That has been the tradition for ages. If anyone tries to monopolise it, they are trying to change the order of God and the order of tradition, and that will affect many lives.”

Meanwhile, Electrochem has condemned what it describes as a “violent and premeditated attack” on its facility on January 9, 2025. The company alleges that a group of heavily armed and masked assailants stormed its premises, assaulting staff, ransacking offices, looting residential accommodations, and stealing large quantities of salt. According to the company, the attackers claimed political affiliations and inflicted significant damage to its property. While it failed to mention the political affiliation in question, the Ada and Sege constituencies have consistently voted for the National Democratic Congress since 1992.

Following this incident, the company said it observed an increase in unauthorized salt mining activities within the Songor Lagoon. Electrochem in a written response to The Fourth Estate claims that some community members, emboldened by the attack, began invading its evaporators—large reservoirs used to generate high-quality brine for salt production. The company insists that salt mining within the lagoon itself is illegal and falls under unregulated practices.

Electrochem says it has since worked with law enforcement agencies to restore order in parts of the lagoon and is engaging with local authorities to address security breaches. The company maintains that its priority is the safety of its staff and the integrity of its operations and assures stakeholders that steps are being taken to prevent future disruptions.

However, ASLA has strongly refuted claims by Electrochem that its facility was violently attacked and vandalised by armed assailants. ASLA’s Deputy General Secretary, Ebenezer Adjaottor, describes the allegations as “baseless and must be treated with the contempt they deserve.”

According to Adjaottor, artisanal miners did not invade Electrochem’s facility to destroy property or steal salt, as the company claims. Instead, their actions were aimed at retrieving personal items, including tools and equipment, which had been unlawfully confiscated and hidden in the company’s warehouse by Electrochem officials.

“We didn’t destroy their property. We simply retrieved what belongs to us, which they seized unlawfully,” Adjaottor emphasizes.

Electrochem has repeatedly claimed that the activities of artisanal miners within the lagoon, a rudimentary method of salt harvesting—amount to illegal mining. However, ASLA’s Vice Chairman dismisses this assertion, arguing that artisanal miners have used this method for generations, long before Electrochem’s arrival.

“How can this be illegal when it is the very method our forefathers used to mine salt for decades?” he questions.

On Electrochem’s claim that artisanal miners invaded the company’s reservoirs, the Vice Chairman rejected this characterisation, insisting those parts of the lagoon belong to artisanal miners.

“That is a community resource, not a company reservoir. Electrochem should stick to the areas [Vaccum Salt/ Songor Salt Project/factory] originally allocated to them,” he argues.

Meanwhile, video footage reviewed by The Fourth Estate during the raid showed that only the equipment of artisanal miners was retrieved from Electrochem’s warehouse. This evidence contradicts the company’s claim that offices were ransacked and residential accommodations looted. Electrochem is yet to supply The Fourth Estate with evidence of its claims.

Community pans

When Electrochem took over the salt deposits, it restricted public access to the lagoon. It promised to construct community pans, from which the indigenous people could mine for salt. The pans are basically huge dugouts that can be filled with salt water (or brine) from the lagoon.

With evaporation, brine crystalises into salt. The company claims to have constructed seven of such community pans, but The Fourth Estate found four during its investigations last year. Three of them are actively in use. But there are over 30 communities that depend on salt mining and over 15,000 small-scale salt producers in the area, according to ASLA. If the community pans were meant to make up for their lack of access to the lagoon, then even the seven pans the company claims to have constructed were woefully inadequate.

Background of The Fourth Estate’s Investigations

The Fourth Estate’s investigative series revealed that the Ada Traditional Council engaged businessman Daniel McKorley (McDan) to revive the defunct Songor Salt Project, leading to a 2019 MoU granting Electrochem control over 12,428 acres. However, Parliament later ratified an expansion to 39,126 acres, which Electrochem eventually stretched to 41,000 acres—covering the entire lagoon. This criminalized artisanal salt mining as the miners are accused and charged with trespass. This triggered at least 28 violent clashes between 2021 and 2023, resulting in deaths and injuries.

The exposé ignited public outrage and resistance. ASLA petitioned the Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) committee to investigate alleged corruption and state capture in the leasing of the lagoon. In February 2025, the group also petitioned Parliament through the speaker, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin to revoke Electrochem’s control over the entire Songor Lagoon.

“We urge you to take these concerns seriously and ensure that the lease serves the best interests of Ada and Ghana,” ASLA’s General Secretary, Anderson Ayornu, states in the petition.

Source: By Philip Teye Agbove