Namayingo gold mine closure leaves 500 miners stranded

What the report says

Hundreds of artisanal gold miners and former employees of a Chinese-owned company are stranded in Namayingo District after police shut down illegal mining sites in Buyanga Village, Sigulu Sub-county. The Independent Uganda, citing URN, reported that the closure happened last month and left many workers without income, food money or transport to return to their home districts.

The article says some former workers of COCO, the Chinese gold mining company operating in the area, allege they were not paid before the sites were closed. Several miners told the publisher they had already extracted gold but had not yet sold it when the operation was halted, which worsened their financial pressure. Individual workers described difficulty meeting basic needs and appealed to government and well-wishers for help.

Artisanal miners and local residents said the shutdown has affected people who had travelled from other districts in search of work, including young people and parents trying to raise school fees. Nixon Jannex, chairperson of the artisanal gold miners, said about 500 miners remained stranded and called for support to help them travel home.

Police Mineral Protection Unit Eastern Zonal Commander Cephus Wanjala said the sites were closed because they were involved in illegal mining. He urged both the company and artisanal miners to obtain the required licences before resuming operations. The case highlights the tension between enforcement against unauthorized mining and the livelihood dependence of workers in the area.