HGP Nightly News – President Irfaan Ali has ordered swift and decisive action against gold miners who fail to comply with Guyana’s declaration laws, signalling a major enforcement push across the mining sector.
The directive was issued during a high-level meeting on Friday at State House, where the President met with senior officials from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC).
During the meeting, President Ali instructed that all gold miners must fully account for and declare every ounce of gold produced in 2025. He warned that registered dredges with no gold declarations will be deregistered without delay, and that foreign nationals operating illegally in the mining sector must be identified, prosecuted, and removed from Guyana.
The President also raised specific concerns about foreign miners, including Brazilian nationals, whose production records reportedly show little to no gold declarations. According to officials, these miners have been given just 24 hours to bring themselves into full compliance with Guyana’s laws and to declare their gold to the Guyana Gold Board.
As part of the wider compliance drive, the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) and the Ministry of Natural Resources will collaborate to ensure that all miners operating in Guyana, across every category, are properly registered and maintain a local bank account.
GGDMA President Ronaldo Alphonso said the mining community must take responsibility for safeguarding the industry’s future, urging miners to operate within the law and sell their gold only to legitimate buyers.
“It is our responsibility as miners to ensure the sustainability of the industry,” Alphonso said. “We need to make it compliant, and we need to declare gold. Make 2026 the year of compliance and declaration.”
The renewed enforcement effort follows recent comments by President Ali that a comprehensive assessment of Guyana’s mining sector is nearing completion. That report, he said, will be presented on January 5 and is expected to outline stronger measures to improve accountability, environmental protection, and production compliance across the industry.
With deregistration, prosecution, and expulsion now explicitly on the table, the government’s message to the mining sector is clear: full compliance is no longer optional.
