Chairman of the African Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), Dele Alake, has called for stronger regulation and safer mining practices across Africa following the reported deaths of more than 100 artisanal miners in a gold-mining site collapse in Zamboye, Central African Republic.
Alake, in a statement issued on Friday, described the incident as a “profound tragedy” that should trouble the conscience of the continent, while expressing condolences to the government and people of the Central African Republic, particularly the families of the victims.
He said the deaths underscored the dangers posed by illegal and unregulated mining, which, apart from depriving African countries of legitimate revenues, damaging the environment and facilitating illicit mineral trafficking, exposes miners to grave risks.
According to him, the victims were not mere statistics but “brothers, fathers, uncles, sons and indeed, breadwinners” whose deaths had devastating consequences for their families and communities.
Alake said the tragedy was a reminder that behind every statistic on illegal mining were young men and women seeking livelihoods, supporting their families and attempting to escape poverty.
“No mineral is valuable enough to justify the loss of a human life,” he said.
The AMSG chairman called for a balanced approach to artisanal and small-scale mining, urging African governments to enforce laws against illegal mining and criminal networks while creating opportunities for artisanal miners to operate legally, safely and productively.
He said the AMSG would continue to advocate a continental approach focused on stronger regulation, improved mine-safety standards and the responsible formalisation of artisanal and small-scale mining.
Alake added that such measures should also protect mining communities and ensure that Africa’s vast mineral resources translated into decent livelihoods rather than preventable deaths.
“This tragedy must not become another statistic that we mourn today and forget tomorrow,” he said.
He stressed that Africa’s mineral revolution must value both the mineral resources beneath the continent’s soil and the lives of the people working to extract them.
“We owe the victims of Zamboye more than our condolences. We owe them action,” Alake said.