Unearthing Resilience: Women's Golden hands defining the Future of Mining in Turkana

Turkana County, a vast and arid region in northern Kenya is a land of contrasts. It is known not only for its rich culture but also as one among the few counties that is home to minerals and precious stones. Mining, particularly artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) has become a vital economic activity for many over time. According to Zakayo, a village elder in Lomeguro, locals discovered gold in 1991 and mining started soon after, offering a lifeline in a county historically characterized by pastoralism and subsistence livelihoods. 

This is a story of how female artisanal miners armed with unwavering determination and basic tools extract minerals such as gold from Turkana’s rocky grounds – spending long hours digging, sifting through soil and sediments in a hopeful gamble of striking valuable gold deposits. However, inadequate access to fair markets and lack of formal structures hinder the miners from fully benefitting from their labour – especially women in the sector, who often face additional economic empowerment barriers. 

Ann

Under the scorching Lomeguro sun, artisanal miners are busy in the gold fields. Among them is 36-year-old Ann, a mother of four who has been mining since 1999. What began as a necessity has become her livelihood, shaping her experiences and those of many women in the sector.

Over the years, Ann has witnessed a shift in women’s roles – from digging the shafts and processing their own gold ore to hiring men for the physically demanding excavation while they oversee operations, refine the gold and sell it. In the past, Ann recalls, gold was easier to find – just four or five feet below the surface unlike now – the shafts are deeper. 

The underground tunnels also come with serious risks as they lack proper oxygen supply and lighting. Ann states a dire need for safety and first aid kits so that they can practice safe mining. 

Individual miners in her village have also come together, forming associations that now operate under Ajokis Cooperative to strengthen their bargaining power. 

Alice

In Naduat, we meet 36-year-old Alice, the chairlady of the Atiakunet Group which started in 2012 as a table-banking self-help group and in 2015, joined the mining sector. Now, they are part of Jatan Cooperative and have both individual and group shafts. As a single mother of 6, Alice has also taken to alternative livelihoods – selling charcoal and water because it is not every day that she gets gold ore.

“The first time I paid people to dig a shaft, we did not get any gold ore from it but the second shaft yielded. At the time, 1gram of gold was going for KSh.4,000. (smiling) the first time I sold almost 7 grams.  This was in 2015.”

Alice states categorically that with a structured market, miners stand to benefit more from their hard work. The Turkana County Association of Artisanal Miners has helped artisanal miners come together to formalize. 

“The Mining Act requires that all miners be part of cooperative societies which are issued with permits – a licence for artisanal miners to do their mining activities”, reiterates Joseph Ekiru, the Chairperson of the association. 

Alice is also a champion for women rights in the mining community in Naduat and it gives her great joy talking to women about avoiding sexual abuse in the mines and negotiating for better pay.  

Challenges

''The main challenge we have is a market where we can sell our gold at a good price. We only sell locally, to dealers who buy from us and go sell at a profit.'' Ann, 36 Female Miner, Lomeguro.

Many miners – particularly women, are forced to rely on middlemen who exploit their lack of bargaining power, purchasing gold at unfair prices, maximizing profits at the miners expense.

The Director of Mining in Turkana County, Elim Areman, highlighted the county’s intention to open a gemstone centre which will be crucial in tracking the quantities of minerals extracted in the county, streamline revenue/royalty collection, and offer a safe transaction environment for the miners. Without a defined market, the trade of minerals remains vulnerable to insecurity and exploitation. 

While traditionally side-lined in male dominated industries, women in Turkana have increasingly carved out space for themselves within the mining sector. Formalizing Turkana’s gold mining industry through policy changes, better infrastructure and the empowerment of female miners is key to unlocking its full potential. The Turkana County Association of Artisanal Miners has been on the forefront of changing the narrative for female artisanal miners in this region in partnership with organizations like Oxfam and Association of Women in Energy and Extractive in Kenya (AWEIK).

Some women have been trained on leadership, human rights, business management, financial management while others have had the opportunity to go on educational visits to Nairobi and Tanzania. The county government of Turkana has also supported some groups with gold ore crushing machines and training on gender inclusion and eradication of gender-based violence in the mining sector. 

By addressing the challenges artisanal miners face, and implementing a structured gold market, stakeholders can transform the sector into an inclusive and sustainable economic driver.