The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) has completed the registration of 9,240 earth-moving machines nationwide as part of efforts to track equipment used in illegal mining.

The Minister for Transport, Joseph Bukari-Nikpe, disclosed this at the Government Accountability Series press briefing in Accra on Wednesday, September 17, 2025. He said the registration exercise was designed to identify equipment owners and improve monitoring of heavy-duty machinery frequently deployed in galamsey operations.

“The DVLA has intensified the registration of earth-moving equipment. The initiative assigns special identification numbers to the machines, which are shared with the Minerals Commission to support tracking and monitoring,” Mr Bukari-Nikpe explained.

He said the system established a clear link between equipment operators and regulators, stressing that the ability to trace ownership was necessary to curb the widespread use of excavators and other machines in illegal mining.

According to him, the 9,240 machines registered so far represented only part of a nationwide programme. He urged equipment owners to comply with the exercise, adding that the database was already accessible to the Minerals Commission and security agencies for enforcement.

Mr Bukari-Nikpe also provided updates on reforms within the transport sector. He said the DVLA had cleared a backlog of 440,000 unprinted driver’s licence cards as of December 2024. All backlog cards had been printed and dispatched to DVLA offices nationwide, with 26,045 currently undergoing lamination.

On service delivery, he announced that the DVLA had operationalised a 24-hour office at the Adenta bus terminal in Accra. The facility, commissioned in May this year, offers round-the-clock services to motorists. He added that four other offices had been opened in Adenta, Buale, Asamankese and Akotsi, with two more in Dorma and Bechem expected to be commissioned later this month.

“These measures are to close the service gap and bring DVLA operations closer to citizens in underserved areas,” he said.

Turning to transport fares, the minister recalled that government had negotiated a 15 per cent reduction effective May 24, 2025, following a drop in fuel prices. He noted that it was the biggest fare cut since the current arrangement for determining fares was introduced in 2015.

Mr Bukari-Nikpe also addressed road safety, revealing that 1,504 lives were lost to accidents in the first half of the year. He said the ministry was working on amendments to the Road Traffic Regulations to strengthen education and enforcement in a bid to reduce preventable deaths.

He stressed that government remained committed to resetting the transport sector in line with President John Dramani Mahama’s 24-hour economy policy. He further noted that the Ghana Transport and Logistics Fair, scheduled for September 22 to 24, 2025, at the World Trade Centre in Accra, would provide a platform for innovation and engagement among industry players.

“It is our expectation that with your support, we will achieve the targets we have set to improve the transport environment in line with the resetting Ghana agenda,” the minister said.