Current ecocide definitions inadequately address Global South environmental and socio-economic realities. This paper proposes an expanded definition, incorporating harm to human livelihoods and fundamental rights, using Ghana’s illegal gold mining (galamsey) crisis as a demonstrative example. The modified definition captures severe environmental damage and its impacts on human health, safety, livelihood and rights across generations. This framework recognises that environmental crimes in developing countries cannot be separated from socio-economic consequences, particularly for vulnerable communities depending on natural resources. Using existing studies, government reports and documented accounts, we examine how galamsey exemplifies environmental destruction requiring this expanded conceptualisation. Applying political ecology theory, the analysis reveals how global market demands, local power dynamics and weak governance enable large-scale environmental destruction with profound socio-economic consequences. The paper then identifies a critical definitional gap in ecocide scholarship and proposes a framework better reflecting Global South realities. The findings support expanding ecocide definitions beyond environmental destruction to include socio-economic impacts, offer an alternative assessment framework incorporating human rights dimensions and demonstrate the urgent need for international legal mechanisms recognising the full scope of environmental harm in resource-dependent developing economies.