Gold Miners in Namayingo Face Job Losses as Police Shut Mines

What the report says

Miners and traders in Namayingo District, in Uganda’s eastern Busoga sub-region, say the shutdown of several gold mining sites in Sigulu Sub-county has left them at risk of job and income losses. According to Nile Post, the Minerals Protection Police sealed sites in Buyanga Village, Labach Parish, over allegations that the operations were being run without the required licences.

The closures have affected not only miners but also traders and companies that supply goods and services to the mining communities. Some workers told the publisher they had already turned to gold mining after losing income from fishing, and they now fear the latest crackdown will remove one of their remaining sources of support. A manager at Coco Mining Uganda Limited said the shutdown disrupted company operations, left some employees idle, and could delay planned local projects, including a solar power plant.

Police, however, said the mines cannot reopen until operators obtain approval from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development. Eastern Zone Minerals Protection Police commander Cephus Wanjala said mining had continued despite the absence of licences and that enforcement was meant to stop illegal activity. The dispute highlights a broader tension between regulation of mineral extraction and the dependence of nearby households on small-scale mining for livelihoods.