This type of traditional mining in southern and western Mali is known as artisanal or small-scale mining and is carried out by individuals, groups or families with minimal or no mechanisation using labour-intensive excavation and processing methods. Artisanal mining accounts for about four tons of gold per year.
About 10-metres away, is another teenager, Mamadou who is cutting through bedrock 100 feet (30m) underground.
“I would also like to be in school and would like to have a white collar job,” the soft-spoken Mamadou, said constantly glancing at his father as though to confirm that it is okay to answer our questions......
It is believed that there are about 350 artisanal mining sites across western and southern Mali attracting between 100,000 to 200,000 people. The International Labour Organisation estimates that about 20 per cent of these are children...........
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