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The life of a small-scale or artisanal gold miner is tough – and is often chosen as a job when no other options remain. Yet over 100 million people worldwide are right now pounding rocks or using poor technology to excavate gold from the ground.
Dunane Jones is 37-years-old and a father of five in Tanzania. He is one of these millions. He used to be a farmer but when changing weather patterns caused his crops to fail he was faced with little choice. In order to feed his family he had to start mining.
Dunane said: “Mining is hard but it’s better than nothing. Poverty in the region is so bad. With mining you can get work if all else fails.”
So every day Dunane accepted the dangerous conditions of the mines and worked hard under the relentless Tanzanian sun trying to find gold. Desperation and the needs of his family meant he would put up with a toxic mix to his safety and health such as the precarious timber supports in the mining holes, the deafening noise, constant dust and mercury fumes which can cause severe health issues. He would then receive the tiniest proportion of the value of the precious metal that he risked his life to unearth.
But things are slowly changing for people like Dunane. The mine where he works in the north west of the country is one of a group supported by local organisations which are funded by Comic Relief. A three year grant is helping them to move towards gaining the official Fairtrade standards of certification.
For the next two weeks until March 13 it is Fairtrade fortnight – an annual campaign which aims to raise awareness of Fairtrade initiatives and products.
Comic Relief has a strong history of supporting the Fairtrade movement for change. Since 2002 Comic Relief has supported over 1.4m small-scale producers working in supply chains across sub-Saharan Africa to improve their working conditions and livelihoods and receive a fair price for their produce through certification.
In 2008, a five year £5 million grant supported the establishment of Fairtrade Africa, increasing the support provided to Fairtrade organisations and producers in Africa, and developing standards for products relevant to African producers.
For Dunane and others like him working at the mines this means many crucial changes. They have received equipment to keep them safer like a hard hat, goggles and boots; the burning of mercury in the open air is banned; and democratically organised groups have been organised to help bring about further reforms including getting a fairer deal on the price they get for the gold the find.
As the lead trainer from MTL Consulting, one of the Comic Relief funded local partners, Tina Mwasha explains – Fairtrade is about both practical and mindset changes.
She said: “Small scale mining in Tanzania is starved of technology and can be highly dangerous. It needs to change greatly. Fairtrade is about a change of attitude and it really can give them safer and better lives. If we can make Fairtrade work here, I want the influence to spread to other mines across Africa.”
