BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — An unregulated gold mine collapsed in Mali late last week, killing more than 70 people, an official said Wednesday, and the search continued amid fears the toll could rise.
Karim Berthé, a senior official at the government's National Geology and Mines Directorate, confirmed the details to The Associated Press, calling it an accident.
According to Abdoulaye Pona, president of the Malian Chamber of Mines, who was at the scene of the accident, there were about 100 people in the mine at the time of the collapse.
The cause of the collapse, which occurred in Kangaba district in the southwestern Koulikoro region on Friday, was under investigation. This was first reported on Tuesday in a statement from the Ministry of Mines, which said “several” miners had died.
Such tragedies are commonplace in Mali, Africa's third-largest gold producer. Artisanal miners – small, informal miners – are often accused of ignoring safety measures, particularly in remote areas.
“The state must bring order to this small-scale mining sector in order to avoid accidents of this type in the future,” said Berthé.
The mining ministry's statement “deeply regretted” the collapse and urged miners and communities living near mining sites to “comply with safety requirements.”
In recent years there have been concerns that profits from unregulated mining in northern Mali could benefit extremists active in that part of the country.
However, the region of this latest collapse is far south of that and closer to the capital Bamako.
“Gold is by far Mali’s most important export, accounting for more than 80% of total exports in 2021,” according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. It is said that more than 2 million people, or more than 10% of Mali's population, rely on the mining sector for their income.
Artisanal gold mining is estimated to produce around 30 tonnes of gold per year and accounts for 6% of Mali's annual gold production.
The Ministry of Mines estimates that the country has 800 tons of gold reserves. According to Pona, there are also an estimated two million gold miners in the country, working in around 300 artisanal mining sites.