Strict adherence to mining regulations must become norm – GGDMA

– as small miners receive equipment to boost production

The Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) has reiterated calls for miners to operate in the best interest of the sector by strictly adhering to the regulations in place. Managing Director of the GGDMA, Avalon Jagnandan, said that the Association remains committed to the sustainability and growth of the local mining sector, noting that they are actively pushing for increased production/declarations. In a statement from the Association on Saturday, he reminded miners that “strict adherence to the mining regulations must become the norm” while repeating the GGDMA’s call for miners to sell their gold only to legitimate buyers and the Guyana Gold Board (GGB).

Similar sentiments were echoed by Vice President (VP) of the GGDMA, Dabria Marcus, who also urged miners to “operate in the best interest of the country by becoming fully compliant and declaring all their production”. He also called on all miners to join the association, noting that the association is for all miners.
The GGDMA officials made these remarks during the recent handover of mining equipment to small miners to boost their operation. According to Marcus, the donation is part of an ongoing exercise aimed at helping miners get back into the industry. He noted that the GGDMA is playing its part in responding to President Irfaan Ali’s call to expand the sector. The GGDMA’s assistance programme helps small miners re-enter the industry and expand operations by handing over essential mining equipment to two small-scale miners. The recent donation was made to the Jackman family. The Association explained that this small mining family had encountered hard times.  As a result, the committee of management, consisting of the President and executives, decided to help this family by outfitting them with equipment to get back to work. During the handover, the Jackmans thanked the association for their assistance and promised to operate in a fully compliant manner. The GGDMA will monitor their declarations and operation via reporting. As a condition to getting the assistance, all small miners receiving the items are required to provide evidence of their gold declarations at the end of the year, ensuring that this investment directly contributes to formal sector reporting and regulatory adherence. The miners were reminded that they must sell their gold to the GGB or licensed buyers and keep all their records as evidence. “The GGDMA believes that empowering miners with tools and promoting compliance are interdependent pillars for a robust and sustainable future,” the missive from the association detailed.

Curbing illegal gold trade, streamlining sector
In recent months, there has been a renewed drive by local mining authorities to curb illegal gold trade and streamline the mining sector to strengthen accountability, environmental protection and production compliance. Just last week, President Ali instructed the Natural Resources Ministry and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) to take immediate action to ensure all gold miners fully comply with their obligations to declare all gold produced in 2025.
He also ordered that all registered dredges with no declaration be deregistered, and all foreign miners operating illegally in Guyana must be identified for prosecution and expulsion. It was further noted that some Brazilian miners operating in Guyana have had very low or no declarations. Those miners were given 24 hours to comply fully with the laws of Guyana and the requirement to declare to the GGB. Following the Head of State’s directives on January 2, the Natural Resources Ministry carried out a joint operation with the Guyana Police Force (GPF) in Georgetown during which undocumented individuals were processed, gold was seized and persons of interest were verified.
The GGMC said similar operations will be conducted across the country to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations, reminding stakeholders that the Guyana Government maintains a strict zero-tolerance policy towards illegal mining activities. In fact, the Commission has suspended the operations of over 100 Brazilian nationals who operate here and failed to get processed and verify their information during the exercise last weekend. According to the GGMC in a public notice on January 5, “Such suspension takes effect immediately and shall remain in force pending the affected persons’ engagement with and compliance to the satisfaction of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission.”