Request for Proposal; Mini-Grant for the "Voices of Children from the Pits" (VoC) Program
This initiative aims to raise awareness and collect crucial data about the conditions of children at mine sites across Africa. We invite...
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Support Women Artisanal Miners in Africa
Artisanal Women Miners in Rural African Communities
Engaging and enhancing the capacities of rural women miners as key agents for achieving transformational economic, environmental and social changes in Africa is required for sustainable livelihoods in the mining communities and families. It is well known that women dominate the mining sector informally in most African Countries but have limited access to credit, health care and education among the many challenges they face.
WIM-Africa's focus on empowering women miners in rural communities is key to the well-being of individuals, families and rural communities and overall economic productivity, given women’s large presence in the rural mining workforce in Africa.
WIM-Africa Initiatives aims to improve the working conditions of women in rural mining communities in Africa by initiating skills development programs, leadership and management knowledge geared towards improving the way mining is done and reducing the attendant risks associated with the harsh approach adopted in most cases.
WIM-Africa programs, targeting grassroots also advocate for responsible mineral sourcing from women and children through engagements with the off-takers, governments and non-governmental associations involved in the minerals supply chain.
Zimbabwe; Women call for parity in mining sector
Women in the small scale and artisanal mining sector have decried the unlevel playing field in the lucrative sector, saying their participation is still limited despite contributing significantly to the overall gold production in the country.
Gender inequality is rife in the mining sector, with the Zimbabwe Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Council, estimating that of the 500 000 artisanal miners in the country, 153 000 of them are women and children.
What are the Gender Dimensions of Child Labour in Mining?
Child labour in mining is gendered. Girls and women primarily wash the minerals, sell food and products around the mining site, are involved in sex work in the mining area and perform household duties. To address the root causes of child labour, its consequences and its gendered dimensions, as well as avenues for intervention in artisanal and small-scale mines (ASM), the Women’s Rights and Mining (WRM) working group organised a virtual roundtable on June 16, 2022.
DRC
Can African women benefit from mining?
When you think of a Congolese miner, I bet you picture a man. But one in four miners in Africa are women — like Bibicha Sanao, who pans for gold to support herself and her family.
Mining can be hazardous work, for anyone. But women face specific barriers that men don’t. They get paid less and face discrimination, in laws and in cultural norms.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, seven out of 10 women work in the informal economy, with no benefits like child care, pensions or health care.
Women in Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining
The role of women in ASM is significant, as they make up around over 70 per cent of the total workforce in the artisanal cycle most often reffered to as illegal miners.
Women have always been part of the mining workforce. Women have primarily been involved in stone breaking manually in the pits, haulage, stone breaking, crashing, sluicing, washing, panning, sieving, sorting, mercury-gold amalgamation, amalgam decomposition and, in rare occasions, actual organised mining.
Unsafe, Unequal Working Conditions - Tanzania Case Study
In Tanzania, Women represent up to 50% of the workforce in mines, however their contribution is not fairly rewarded. Women miners lack access to skills and resources to improve their income.
Furthermore, cultural barriers and gender-based discrimination force them to take on low-paid and low-skilled jobs in the mines.
They also face severe health risks and are exposed to sexual and gender-based violence. This leaves them vulnerable to unwanted pregnancy and the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases. These challenges impact women, their families, the communities they live in, and the gold industry as a whole.
Fair Share for Women Miners - Kenya Case Study
In Kenya, ASM sector employs over 10000 workers, majorly informal and majority of them being women. The mining sector has immense potential to be a core driver of Kenya’s economic revival. It would achieve a higher representation of women and gender-inclusive strategies within the sector and lead to safer work practices for rural women miners if correctly managed. Read More
Artisanal mining is poorly regulated and often not taxed, and women artisanal miners are exploited by companies who buy their produce cheaply. The use of child labour and mercury in small-scale mining are critical human rights and health issues that need to be addressed. The legalization of artisanal mining in Kenya’s new Mining Law 2016 provided a great opportunity for artisanal miners, including women, to properly organize their activities and have potential access to legal markets. Read More
Latest Insights from WIM-Africa
Get Involved - Empower Women Artisanal Miners!
Partner with Us at WIM-Africa
For us to to reach rural women miners in the states of Africa, and to make an impact in the lives of the women mining in very harsh conditions, we need your help.
You can support the WIM-Africa Project in selected localities in your state in many ways;
1. Information about the locations of the women in the rural communities needing help desperately
2. Technical and professional advice,
3. Project Sponsorship
Please get in touch with ed@iwoma.org
Donate
Your donation can help us provide critical support to women artisanal miners in Africa. Join us in promoting gender equity and social justice in the mining sector.
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