Socio-economic impact of gold panning in the kenieba circle in Mali

Abstract

The population of Mali derives its income mainly from agriculture. The growth shown in this area could be supported by the mining sector given that Mali has large gold deposits that provide the country with about 75% of its export earnings.

Gold panning has fostered the development of several villages in the south-West of Mali, which is home to the country's main gold resources. Kéniéba, is today one of the main localities in the Kayes region where gold mining is practiced with more than 148368 gold miners in search of the yellow metal. This activity contributes substantially to the local economy of this locality. In addition, it involves the use of toxic chemicals including mercury.

Gold mining is the main activity of several communities to the detriment of agriculture in the regions of Kayes, Sikasso and Gao. The objective of this paper is to understand the socio-economic externalities resulting from gold mining in the area of Kéniéba (Kayes) for the population. Through interviews and semi-structured interviews, analysis of reports and articles, we respond to the issue of the effects of the proliferation of traditional gold mining on the populations concerned. Our results confirm that gold mining induces a reduction in poverty rates and an increase in the average annual income of households in the areas hosting this activity. On the other hand, it also has negative effects in that it increases income inequalities, the excessive degradation of the environment through uncontrolled chemicals and child labor.

JEL Classification: O31, O34, Q12   

Paper type: Empirical research