Mali gold mine collapse kills more than 70

Mali, which is among the world's poorest countries, is one of Africa'sleading gold producers.
Gold mining sites are regularly the scene of deadly landslides andauthorities struggle to control artisanal mining of the precious metal.
"It started with a noise. The earth started to shake," Oumar Sidibe, anofficial for gold miners in the southwestern town of Kangaba, told AFP, ofthe incident on Friday.
"There were over 200 gold miners in the field. The search is over now. We'vefound 73 bodies," he said.
The same toll was given by a local councillor.
Mali's ministry of mines in a statement on Tuesday had announced the death ofseveral miners but did not give precise figures.
The government offered its "deepest condolences to the grieving families andto the Malian people".
It also called on "communities living near mining sites and gold miners toscrupulously respect safety requirements and to work only within theperimeters dedicated to gold panning".
Mali's mining sector is dominated by foreign groups, including Canada'sBarrick Gold and B2Gold, Australia's Resolute Mining and Britain'sHummingbird Resources, which continue to operate despite the politicalinstability that has plagued the country for years.
But artisanal mines also continue to flourish and attract thousands of goldminers.
- Perilous conditions -
Gold mining in the Sahel region is a dangerous business.
Human rights organisations regularly denounce the use of child labour inartisanal mining operations.
The continuous arrival of new gold panning workers and the lack ofinfrastructure to support them results in perilous living and workingconditions, according to a report by the International Organization forMigration (IOM) published in 2019.
"Living far from an urban centre, in areas where the State presence isnegligible, the migrants generally benefit from no measures of workplaceprotection," the report said.
"In the event of illness or accident, it is difficult to obtain treatment orcare, given the distance to hospital and the state of the roads," the IOMadded.
"The hostile and precarious living conditions nevertheless do not stop theminers from settling at the sites".
In February 2022, at least 59 people were killed in southwestern Burkina Fasoafter the explosion of a stockpile of dynamite at an artisanal gold miningsite.
Mining accidents are also regularly reported in Guinea, Senegal and westernMali.
Mali produced 72.2 tonnes of gold in 2022 and the metal contributed 25percent of the national budget, 75 percent of export earnings and 10 percentof GDP, the then minister of mines Lamine Seydou Traore said in March lastyear.
Since taking power in 2020, the military leaders in Mali have pledged torestore sovereignty and enable the country to benefit from its naturalwealth. Authorities rarely report on mining accidents.
Mali adopted a new mining code in August, enabling the state to take up to a30-percent stake in new projects, reports BSS.
The government has said the move should bring in at least 500 billion CFAfrancs ($830 million) to the annual state budget.