The recent incident involving more than 4,000 "zama zama" miners trapped underground in Stilfontein, South Africa, has highlighted the urgent issue of illegal mining. DW explores the factors driving this underground industry, the people involved and the challenges in addressing and regulating it effectively.
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00:00 Illegal mining is basically the illicit extraction and trade of precious metals such as gold,
00:05 diamond, cobalt without proper licensing or adherence to regulations.
00:10 It is a complex issue that intersects with organized crime,
00:14 environmental degradation, and human exploitation.
00:17 The scale of the problem is staggering.
00:20 In Central African Republic CAR, for example, it is estimated that 97.5% of gold production
00:28 is not officially registered and is smuggled out of the country.
00:31 According to the mining group GEMFIELDS,
00:33 20% of the world's gold production comes from artisanal mining, much of it illegal.
00:39 So who are the players in illegal mining?
00:43 An Interpol report says that the miners themselves are at the bottom of the chain.
00:48 They are often vulnerable individuals who trade their safety
00:51 for the slim chance of a golden ticket out of poverty.
00:56 Women make up half of Africa's artisanal miners and children another 10%.
01:01 Mine managers, financers, and then illegal buyers are also involved.
01:06 At the very top are some big dealers, organized crime groups, otherwise known as OCGs,
01:12 high-ranking political and economic actors, as well as non-state armed groups in conflict
01:17 zones like in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
01:20 But why can't governments stop them?
01:23 The answer, according to most analysts, lies in corruption and lack of political will.
01:28 Additionally, illegal mining provides a living
01:31 albeit dangerous and illegal to millions of impoverished citizens,
01:36 making some governments hesitant to crack down, some reports suggest.
01:40 Some countries like South Africa are even mulling plans to
01:43 formalize artisanal mining in a bid to mitigate the scourge.
01:47 In Ghana, tech-based solutions like using artificial intelligence,
01:51 remote sensing, and satellite data are being explored to mitigate the effects of illegal mining.