LEVERAGING DRONE TECHNOLOGY TO COMBAT ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND EDUCATIONAL DISRUPTION IN GALAMSEY-PRONE AREAS IN GHANA

Ghana’s small-scale illegal gold mining (galamsey) continues to lead to unprecedented environmental destruction even as it also simultaneously limits school attendance for schoolchildren in mining-communities. This article investigates the twin travesty of ecosystem destructions and school dropouts with the introduction or adoption of drone technology as a new intervention method. With intensive research complemented by primary data evidence, establishment of policy as well as technological innovations, the article makes a critical case for the adoption of drone monitoring for further surveillance on the environment as well as school retainability. The article also reveals the socio-economic faces of galamsey by revealing its disproportional impact on vulnerable groups as well as the wider sustainable development agendas for Ghana.