In developing countries, artisanal and small-scale mining are an important part of the economy, especially for the rural poor. Traditionally, the mining industry has always played an important role in Uganda’s economy, with minerals such as gemstones, white marble, sand, limestone, gold, copper, tin, and iron among others. These minerals provide rural communities with a daily source of income. In the mazes of Uganda’s gold mines, the presence of child artisan miners is largely ignored. Some of them are barely 17 years old, but they toil in these hazardous environments, bearing the heaviest load, driven by poverty and the universal struggle to survive. It is a combination of modern-day slavery and child labour as JOCYLYNNE NAKIBUULE reports.
