Over 2160 artisanal mining focuses were identified in the country as part of the Artisanal Miners Census, whose results have just been released by the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (MIREME), in coordination with the National Statistics Institute (INE).
The data shows that of the total of the identified focuses 1577 are active, with 31% dedicated to gold mining.
In 2021, artisanal mining involved 806 957 people, corresponding to 2.6% of the national population. Three quarters of the miners have the activity as their main source of income. Most of them are men (88.3%) and 68% of them are young people between 15 and 34 years old.
The results also revealed that 53% of the artisanal miners are self-employed, more than 50% are involved in gold extraction and about 30% in construction materials (stone, sand and clay).
The Artisanal Mining Census was launched in August 2021 and results from the Government’s recognition of the role of this segment of mining activity practiced in Mozambique since the end of the 12th century, with the main minerals historically extracted being gold, precious and semi-precious stones and, recently, construction stone, limestone, sand, clay, tantalite and mineral coal.
In conducting this statistic, the Government’s main objectives were to provide indicators on artisanal mining for planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development policies for the sector.
The census covered all artisanal mining foci, mine owners, associated miners, wage earners as well as mining traders and mining service providers on a sample basis.
Data collection was carried out from August to November 2021 in the southern, central and northern regions of the country, followed by data evaluation and analysis from December 2021 to June 2022.
The data obtained by the census will allow the various sectors of the Government to improve their technical assistance instruments to the artisanal mining sub-sector, allowing, among other actions, to increase the formalisation of the activity, intervene in the use of environmentally responsible and safe techniques, capture revenues, account for jobs created and manage public health and safety.
The Artisanal Mining Census of Mozambique is the first in the country and in the southern region of Africa.
