Rwanda is endowed with abundant mineral resources. From wolfram, cassiterite, and coltan, to gold, gemstones, and lithium. These rich minerals have increasingly attracted investors hoping to turn alpha. As a result, the mining sector has generated massive revenue to the country. But mining is a complex process that involves digging up the earth’s surface and sending men underneath to caves where there are often harsh and unpredictable conditions such as potentially toxic gases. To understand how dangerous mining is, think about this statistic: Although the mining industry employs only 1% of the global labour force, it generates 8% of all fatal accidents. Therefore, if this process is not well prepared throughout exploration and extraction, it leads to dangerous accidents. This has been the case in the past. Mine accidents have killed at least 429 people while 272 were injured in a period of five years leading to 2023. That is usually a result of poor occupational safety, health, and working conditions in the mining sector. We should not afford to continue losing lives at the expense of trying to reach precious minerals that we desperately need to boost our economy. We must put in place every possible measure to prevent tragic events that lead to the loss of life. Indeed, the new health and safety measures that have been put in place by the Rwanda Standards Board (RSB) could serve as a step in the right direction toward reversing the trend. For instance, mine cave-ins or mine collapses, which are some of the most widely reported mining accidents, can be prevented. Although the conditions that lead to cave-ins can be unpredictable, they can be assessed and prepared for before even beginning mining activities in that area. Other practices such as blasting that involve the use of explosives to clear areas of the mines can be avoided or the risks can be reduced by adopting high quality ventilation solutions. Now that better safety standards are in place, the next step should be enforcing them without delay. There should be zero tolerance to companies that do not enforce these rules.
