The collapse of gold mines in Sudan claims dozens of lives amid increasing risks

Author, Muhammad Muhammad Othman

Role, BBC Sudan correspondent

Published 2 minutes ago

Reading time: 5 minutes

Cases of gold mining mine collapses have increased recently in Sudan, which has led to the death and injury of dozens of people working in this field.

Within a few days, 5 adjacent wells collapsed in a mine located in the Nahud area in West Kordofan State, leading to the death of at least 83 people and the injury of dozens.

Three days later, a well collapsed in a mine located in the Jabit region in the far east of the country, killing 12 people and injuring others.

Not the first time

These incidents were not the first of their kind, but rather the latest in a series of many collapses that several mines witnessed during this year.

At the beginning of the year, about 13 people were killed when a well collapsed in a mine in the Abu Jubaiha area in South Kordofan state, and last April, 6 people were killed when the mine in which they were excavating collapsed in the cannabis area in the Red Sea state. At the end of last June, about 50 people were killed when the mine collapsed on their heads in the Haya region in eastern Sudan.

Despite the serious risks surrounding the gold prospecting profession, it still attracts many people to it on a daily basis.

Since Sudan turned to relying on gold after losing petroleum resources following the secession of South Sudan in 2011, many Sudanese have turned to working in the field of prospecting.

But their numbers doubled significantly during the war that broke out in 2023, to exceed about 6 million people working in more than 800 sites, according to statements by the Director General of the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company, Mohamed Taher, which is the government body responsible for organizing exploration operations.

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Among these miners is Adam Al-Faki, who used to work in agriculture in his area in North Kordofan State.

He told the BBC that he was forced to leave his job and family and head to the far north of Sudan, where mining mines are widespread, traveling thousands of kilometers in an effort to improve his living conditions.

Al-Faki is currently struggling with hundreds of people to obtain gold in mines located in mountainous and rugged areas that lack the most basic safety features. He explains that they work in arduous conditions and use primitive means in drilling and exploration operations in the hope of finding it.

He added, "I left the agricultural profession due to the instability resulting from the war, and I came to the gold areas here. We work with more than 50 people in one well in shifts, and we have not found anything until this moment, but I hope that we will find gold and sell it to change my economic situation."

Absence of safety standards and weak supervision

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An expert in the field of public safety, Dr. Abdul Rahim Hassan, attributes the causes of the repeated collapses of gold mine wells to the absence of safety and security standards and weak oversight of these mines.

He explained during his interview with the BBC that the large increase in the number of miners after the outbreak of the war also contributed to the increase in the incidence of collapses due to the wells being overcrowded with workers.

He continued, adding, "In general, there are many reasons, but the most important of them is that most wells are dug in random ways and contain tunnels that lack engineering supports, in addition to climatic factors such as torrents and heavy rain, especially since most of the mines are located in mountainous areas."

Hassan, who worked as a consultant for a company in exploration areas, called on government authorities to tighten control over mines and oblige applicants to adhere to safety standards when granting licenses to individuals, indicating that the responsible authorities have a role in what happens and bear part of the responsibility “because they grant licenses and charge financial fees for them, but in return they do not carry out oversight operations in the required manner.”

On the other hand, government officials confirm that they are doing their best to secure gold mining sites, but they face enormous challenges.

In this regard, the director of the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company indicated that there are plans in place to organize the informal mining sector and accommodate the increasing numbers of miners.

He explained that the challenges facing the authorities in monitoring workers are enormous. The most notable of which is the wide geographical area of ​​the mines and the difficulty of accessing them because they are located in remote and mountainous areas, and some of them are on the border with neighboring countries.

He added that the war conditions doubled the scope of the challenges in light of the cessation of the work of state institutions and the absence of employees, which led to a significant decline in oversight.

Gold smuggling

Gold prospecting in Sudan is not limited to the traditional sector. Rather, dozens of governmental, private and foreign companies work in the fields of exploration and prospecting, and they account for the largest percentage of the production of the precious metal.

Official reports indicate that the number of these companies has reached 60, half of which have already entered the production stage.

These companies are distributed among the areas controlled by the army in the north, east, center and west of the country, and others operate in areas controlled by the Rapid Support Forces in the Darfur and Kordofan regions.

Sudan is one of the most prominent gold producers on the African continent, as it ranks third in terms of quantities produced.

Despite the continuation of the war, last year recorded the highest production rate of 70 tons, according to official data.

However, government officials and reports issued by concerned international organizations state that most of this gold is smuggled out of the country through Egypt, Chad and South Sudan, before arriving in the United Arab Emirates, which is the final destination for Sudanese gold.

According to a report issued by the British Chatham House Center issued last March, more than 60% of the gold smuggled from areas controlled by the army reaches Egypt.

A source of fueling armed conflict

In light of these conditions, it seems that Al-Faki and other traditional miners will continue their work in the mines despite the high risks. He says: “I know that I work in dangerous areas and that I am at risk of death at any moment, but what prompted me to do so was the worst option, which is to live with my family in an area that is witnessing military operations and where there are no ways to work or go out. So I decided to try my luck in searching for gold, in the hope that my situation will change for the better one day.”