Gold, Grit, and Survival: The Untold Stories of Kakamega’s Women Miners

As we drive to the Bushiangala mining site in Ikolomani Sub County, Kakamega County, the journey feels like an adventure in itself. A narrow, bumpy path snakes its way to the heart of this bustling mining hub.

The sound of grinding tuk-tuk engines and the occasional chatter of pedestrians breaks the rural silence as they head to the mining site. At the end of this rugged trail lies a scene that embodies both promise and despair.

The Bushiangala mining site is a hive of activity. Women with tired eyes and weathered faces move in a steady rhythm, carrying heavy sacks of sand on their backs, their bodies hunched under the load. On the side, others kneel by the waterholes, washing gravel in tin basins, the cool water doing little to ease the heat of the midday sun. A few women stand together, winnowing crushed rocks with homemade sieves, their hands moving methodically as they separate gold dust from the worthless debris and stones.

The air is thick with dust and the loud noise from the grinding machines, while the hard labour persists as shovels strike the earth and hammers pound stubborn rocks. These women work tirelessly, driven by the hope that finding just a few flecks of gold will bring relief from the grinding poverty that has defined their lives.

This has been the daily routine for Caroline Shamwaka and Faith Selebwa. Both women have endured more than the perilous work of mining; their lives bear scars from abuse, shattered marriages, and a resilience that defies the odds.

According to a 2021 report by the International Labour Organization, artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in Kenya employs 40% of its workers as women, translating to approximately 250,000 women working in ASMs across the country. Yet these women face not only workplace challenges but also a hidden epidemic of gender-based violence (GBV) within their homes and communities.

For years, Caroline and Faith have mined for gold to provide for their families, only to confront accusations of infidelity and physical abuse at home. Their stories are emblematic of the challenges women miners endure, not just from the harshness of their work but also from societal norms that often perceive their economic independence as a threat.

Caroline, who starts her day at 8 a.m. at the mining site, finds mining to be a lifeline. With her husband unemployed, all household needs depend on her and her earnings from the mine.

Caroline Shamwaka working

“I start my mining work at 8 a.m., which involves winnowing, crushing stones, washing, and sieving. I began working at the mine in 2014. My husband had no job, and we relied on my modest earnings from the mining site to cater to my family's daily needs, such as food, our children’s school fees, and other basic necessities,” Caroline narrated.

Caroline explained that being the main provider in her family made her husband perceive it as a threat to his masculinity, as he felt she was challenging him. According to African tradition, men are viewed as the heads of the family and are expected to provide for them.

“My husband was not comfortable with me being the sole provider for the family. He felt disrespected and like a lesser man, which led him to start drinking alcohol. He would come home in the evening and start being violent. There was no peace in the house; even my children felt insecure,” she said.

 “It worsened when I would come home late from the mining site, tired. My husband would accuse me of infidelity and chase me out of the house with the children after beating me thoroughly.”

Caroline added that she sought help from the area chief and her in-laws, but to no avail. “My in-laws tried explaining to him that not all women working at the mining site engage in infidelity and attempted to bring peace between us, but my husband never changed. He sometimes threatened to stop me from working at the mining site. I reached out to my area chief, but he remained unhelpful.”

She mentioned that whenever she went to the mining site with bruises and a swollen face, her fellow women miners would ask about her situation. Not wanting to reveal her marital problems at work—knowing they were the main source of her struggles at home—she kept everything to herself, but it didn’t take long for her to break.

"I was not ready to share my marriage problems with other women at the mining site; I kept everything to myself, but I eventually reached a breaking point because I was tired of enduring the abuse. I confided in some women at the mining site, who advised me to run for my life and that of my children. Even my parents gave me the same advice since my husband was unwilling to change. That’s how I ended my marriage,” she explained.

After years of abuse, Caroline left the marriage with her five children and now lives in a rented house near the Bushiangala mining site.

Faith’s journey is similar to that of Caroline. A mother of two, she used to sell avocados at the Kakamega town market before venturing into mining.

Faith Selebwa washing sand 

“I got into mining after experiencing significant losses in my avocado business. This prompted me to try mining to support my family, especially since my husband had lost his job and I was now the breadwinner,” Faith said.

Faith explained that, since she was heavily pregnant with her second child, she couldn’t carry the sacks full of sand on her back. Her job was to crush stones for other miners, for which she earned between 150 Ksh and 200 Ksh.

"When I get home after a long, tiresome day at the mining site, I am so exhausted that I can hardly do anything. My husband does not help with domestic chores, so I am responsible for preparing dinner. When I am too tired to give my husband conjugal rights, he may think I am cheating on him at the mining site," she explained.

Rumours of women miners engaging in affairs for favours sowed distrust in her marriage.

"He believed the gossip, not me. He believed that I was one of the women having affairs at the mining site and that the money I brought home was given to me by other men. He even beat me up. I remember one time when he gave me a beating and chased me out of the house, telling me to go stay with those men at the mining site who were supposedly giving me money. I used to run to neighbours for safety, and remember, I am pregnant," she narrated.

"When it became too much, I decided to go back home and end my abusive marriage."

Despite the challenges, Caroline and Faith have found a renewed sense of purpose through programs introduced by the Migodi ya Usawa project at the mining sites.

The Migodi ya Usawa Project, by the Rising to Greatness Organization in Kakamega County, focuses on empowering women miners and addressing gender-based violence in the county's mining sites.

"Migodi ya Usawa is a project designed to prevent gender-based violence at the mining sites and to empower women miners. To ensure their empowerment, we created advocacy groups at the mining sites, using these groups as advocacy hubs. We conduct monthly visits to different groups to monitor progress regarding economic empowerment and to sensitize the mining community on GBV, referral pathways, and how to report incidents of GBV," Yustine Ooko, the project manager, explains.

Yustine Ooko, the project manager for Migodi ya Usawa project 

Yustine reports that through the Migodi ya Usawa program, women miners come together to form cooperatives to ensure equality in buying and selling gold.

Since its inception, the project has helped over 60 women miners not only to depend on mining but also to diversify their livelihoods, as work at the mining site does not guarantee them a daily meal.

"Through the training and teachings I have received from the Migodi ya Usawa project, I now own a small grocery shop and can feed myself and my children even when I have not gone to the mine," says Faith.

“My earnings at the mining site range from 200 Ksh to 500 Ksh, and sometimes I return home with nothing. Even after crushing the stones and washing the sand, I find no gold to sell and go home empty-handed. However, I joined groups established by the Migodi ya Usawa project, where I learned other means of survival. Through that initiative, I started a poultry farm, which is now doing well and meets some of my needs. I supply eggs and chicken to fellow miners,” Caroline said.

Yustine elaborated that many women at the mining site face backlash because the community perceives an empowered woman as non-approachable and rude, as she understands her rights and stands up for herself. This has been a challenge for many men to accept as competition.

GBV in Mining Communities

The mining industry, being male-dominated, often subjects women to exploitation and discrimination. The experiences of Caroline and Faith reflect a broader issue. A study by the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) in 2022 indicates that approximately 34 percent of women have experienced physical violence since the age of 15, with rural areas like Bushiangala reporting higher rates.

Women in mining areas are particularly vulnerable, facing not only domestic violence but also workplace harassment. In Kenya, informal mining sites lack oversight, leaving women exposed to exploitation by male colleagues and community members.

“The mining community has many issues concerning economic violence. When women lack financial resources, they turn to mining areas to find gold and support their families. As a county, we have implemented strategies where any woman facing gender-based violence can report the matter to the police, as we have provided them with referral pathways,” says Rose Muhanda, the gender-based violence coordinator for Kakamega County.

Rose Muhanda, gender based violence coordinator for Kakamega County 

“We call upon multisectoral collaborations across all sectors, such as the county government, community-based organizations, and others, to help reduce GBV in our sub-counties. We have coordinators in every sub-county where mining occurs for sensitization. The multisectoral approach will help to address the violence,” she explained.

 Human Rights Perspective

From a human rights perspective, GBV in mining sites is not just a social issue but a human rights violation.

“Women miners face a double burden of economic exploitation and violence both at work and at home. As human rights defenders, we need to inform women miners of their rights and how to access them in these spaces to avoid infringement,” says Easter Okech, a human rights expert with the Kenya Female Advisory Organization (KEFEADO).

 Easter Okech, a human rights expert with the Kenya Female Advisory Organization (KEFEADO)

Okech points out that while Kenya has the best laws and policies regarding GBV, the challenge lies in their implementation.

“Enforcement and implementation of laws and policies is the problem in our country. The government puts more effort into other areas, neglecting policies that directly affect citizens, such as miners, resulting in increased exploitation. The ILO Convention 190 addresses the need to end GBV at mining sites, but we haven’t observed any measures from COTU to protect these women in small-scale mining areas,” Okech says.

 A Call for Policy Implementation

Caroline and Faith's story underscores the urgent need for policy interventions. Experts like Okech recommend introducing workplace safety and anti-harassment policies specifically tailored to the mining industry.

“Strengthen the enforcement of GBV laws, particularly in rural and informal sectors,” Okech urges.

Rose advocates for increased economic support, urging the expansion of programs like Migodi ya Usawa to provide more women with alternative livelihoods.

“We also encourage dialogue within communities to challenge harmful norms,” Rose adds.

Caroline and Faith’s resilience inspires hope among other women miners in the community, demonstrating that with the right support, they can overcome their struggles, both domestic and economic.

As Kakamega County observes 16 Days of Activism Against GBV, the stories of these two women remind us of the need to illuminate the often-overlooked challenges faced by women miners. Only through collective action from policymakers and communities can we ensure that the gold they mine does not come at the expense of their dignity and safety.