Let’s use every creative means to end galamsey – Nana Nketia to government

Environmental degradation remains one of Ghana’s most urgent national challenges, and according to environmentalist and herbal practitioner Nana Nketia, it is time for the country to deploy every tool available, including the arts, to confront it.

Nana Nketia, the 2024 Best Herbal Advocate of the Year at the Ghana Leadership Awards, an Africa Image Ambassador, and a board member of the African Chamber of Content Producers (ACCP), made the call after watching Gold Rush Republic, a stage play performed by students of MK Acting College in partnership with the National Theatre of Ghana.

Speaking after the performance, Nana Nketia urged government to adopt creative and culturally resonant approaches to public education on illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, and broader environmental abuse. He stressed that beyond enforcement, citizens must be helped to understand their civic responsibility to protect land, water bodies, and future generations.

“When people see themselves reflected truthfully on stage, learning becomes personal,” he noted. “Creative works like this can reach places policies and press statements cannot.”

According to some of the audience present at the National theatre, Gold Rush Republic used satire, courtroom drama, and carefully restrained humour to examine the human cost of galamsey. Told from the perspective of a symbolic trial, the play places key societal actors under scrutiny, including traditional authority, political leadership, religious influence, local participation, and foreign involvement. Through sharp dialogue and relatable situations, it exposes how denial, blame-shifting, silence, and greed combine to poison rivers, destroy cocoa farms, and endanger public health.

Rather than preaching, the play invites reflection. It asks difficult questions about complicity and accountability, while offering the audience moments of laughter that quickly turn into uncomfortable recognition. Its relevance to the current state of the nation was evident in the audience response, which blended amusement with sober reflection.

Nana Nketia, who attended the performance as a special guest alongside other government officials responsible for various sectors, praised both the performers and the organisers. He encouraged stronger partnerships between state institutions and the creative industry, arguing that national development conversations must move beyond conference rooms and policy documents into spaces where citizens naturally engage.

Several prominent figures from the creative industry were also present, including veteran actor Fred Amugi, Oscar Provencal, Roselyn Ngissah, Rosemond Brown (Akuapem Poloo), Peter Ritchie, Mynna Otto, and others, lending further weight to the call for arts-led advocacy.

The Director of the play and Director of MK Acting College expressed pride in the production, describing it as an example of what young performers can achieve when given the right platform and purpose. He thanked the audience for their strong turnout and engagement, noting that the response affirmed the relevance of theatre in contemporary Ghanaian discourse.

The playwright, Nana Dwomoh-Doyen Benjamin, who also serves as President of the African Chamber of Content Producers, revealed that advocacy lies at the core of the Chamber’s mandate. He explained that when MK Acting College reached out for support to develop a play that could educate the public on galamsey, the Chamber felt a responsibility to respond.

Echoing Nana Nketia’s message, he called on African leaders to think beyond conventional methods and embrace creative professionals as partners in solving Africa’s challenges.

“Africa has storytellers, performers, and thinkers whose work can shape behaviour and influence values,” he said. “If we truly want change, we must use every resource available, including the creative imagination of our people.”

He affirmed that Gold Rush Republic stands as a reminder that the fight against galamsey is not only a legal or technical battle, but also a cultural one, and that sometimes, the stage can speak where authority struggles to be heard.