The Association of Women in Extractive Industries in Kenya has embarked on a project to train artisanal and small-scale gemstone miners in East Africa.
AWEIK has partnered with Moyo Gems, Pact Kenya, Pact Tanzania and the Taita Taveta county government to train and empower artisanal miners in the county.
Taita Taveta Deputy Governor Majala Mlagui said the association targets to support women through training on gemstone value chain, mining health, safety and other related topics.
“We are set to present Moyo project that captures the world's attention with its focus on the artisanal and small-scale gemstone miners in the region. It is also a way of showcasing our minerals and attracting investors,” Mlagui said during a meeting with mining stakeholders at her Mwatate office on Monday.
She said the project is geared towards empowering miners, boosting mineral extraction and increasing the industry’s contribution to the economy.
Mlagui said that the community is yet to benefit from a range of precious stones in the region, and, therefore, the partnership will help alleviate poverty.
“Any project meant to empower artisanal miners should be prioritised to help them come out of poverty. Artisanal miners dominate many parts of the mining zones, thus are key players in the industry,” she added.
Taita Taveta county is endowed with numerous gemstones but hundreds miners still languish in poverty.
The industry is controlled by few large-scale miners, who have often been accused of pushing small-scale miners out of their mining zones.
Some of the commonly mined minerals including tsavorite, ruby, tourmaline, red garnets, green garnets, Tanzanite and iron ore and manganese. Past geological survey has also revealed that the region has also a substantial deposits of titanium, copper, gold and limestone.
“Large-scale miners use artisanal miners for the purposes of prospecting then dump them whenever there is discovery of significant mineral deposits. This has highly contributed to the current status of poverty,” Saida Mandi, an artisanal miner, said.
The Kutima artisanal miners chairperson said the miners had been neglected, further criticized the government for non-involvement of artisanal miners in decision making.
