Advancing women’s participation in Rwanda’s mining sector

Women make up approximately 30% of the nearly 45 million global ASM workforce. They play a variety of important roles, from directly mining to support roles at mine sites and along the entire value chain. However, women’s work in ASM is not always recognized for a variety of reasons such as it often happens out of sight, is not always considered to be direct mining activities, and may be undertaken alongside other livelihood activities such as farming or household tasks. It is also a reflection of women’s wider marginalization and inequality in society.  

In Rwanda, women are estimated to make up 16-20% of the mining labor force, which is primarily comprised of small-scale miners. As a country, Rwanda has some of the most gender-sensitive legislation in the world. The Rwanda Mines, Petroleum, and Gas Board (RMB), the government agency responsible for mining, has not only resolved to protect women’s rights through their 2022 Gender Strategy, but has also set a target of 30% participation of women in mining by 2027. 

Understanding the issues 

In 2021, Pact, along with local women-led NGO Rwanda Women In/And Mining Organization (WIAMO) and RMB, undertook research into a commonly cited reason for lack of women’s participation in mining – inadequate lighting.  Women are disproportionally negatively impacted by poor lighting compared to men. 

Women expressed feeling unsafe working underground with poor lighting because they may be more easily harassed in the dark and were worried about their vulnerability to gender-based violence (GBV). This issue is compounded when small, poorly lit tunnels necessitate crawling and crouching. The women we interviewed also feared traveling to and from mines in the dark, which limited the shifts and jobs they were able to work. 

Additionally, inadequate lighting limits productivity, which, in turn, impacts the income of both mine operators and mine workers, regardless of gender. It also endangers the health and safety of both women and men. Unnecessary lighting costs from disposable batteries that last at most one to two days contribute to financial strain in relation to poor income generation. Disposable batteries also lead to environmental pollution, which disproportionately affects women in both mining operations and their communities. 

In the end, our research confirmed that better quality lighting could help close the gender wage and personal safety gap at mines by enabling women to take on night shifts, feel safer to enter deep tunnels, and improve their personal security. 

Beyond lighting, the project’s gender mainstreaming framework study examined other factors limiting women’s full participation in Rwanda’s mining sector. The study revealed that in addition to lighting, challenges with contractual agreements, facilities, and policies were barriers to women’s participation. 

For example, only permanent staff, which make up a small portion of workers at both mine sites, receive benefits such as social security, maternity leave, and sick leave, leaving non-permanent without these protections. The absence of internal rules and regulations and formal gender policies hindered women’s advancement and protection. While both sites had separate facilities for men and women, minor improvements were needed for privacy of women’s facilities.  

Closing the gaps 

To addresses these challenges, Pact, through the Illuminating Small-Scale Mining in Rwanda project, began piloting the introduction of rechargeable headtorches at two mine sites to replace disposable battery-powered hand torches. The goal was to not only close the gender gap, but to also improve occupational and personal safety, security, efficiency, and productivity in Rwanda’s mining sector. 

In addition to improved lighting, we have also undertaken a range of activities to address the other challenges identified through our research. 

Awareness raising and advocacy have been important components of our work. Working with local banks and our two partner mining companies, we have developed models for companies and miners to secure funding to buy the new rechargeable lighting, overcoming a significant barrier to the uptake of better lighting. We’ve also worked with our mining partners to support gender mainstreaming in their companies, including integrating gender considerations into their internal rules, regulations, policies, plans, budgets, and structures, with some gender specific policies. At the national level, rechargeable lighting solutions are now integrated into RMB’s mining safety standards as a way to further gender equality in mining. 

We also worked closely with mining company staff and surrounding communities, building their knowledge and capacity on gender-sensitive positive impacts of effective lighting solutions. One woman and one man were also elected at each mine to serve as gender champions, helping promote gender equality and communicate achievements among staff. 

Finally, we partnered with Meshpower to install a solar mini-grid lighting system at GMDC, which resulted in a 70% reduction in electricity cost at the site. Less costly rechargeable lighting solutions helps mine workers spend less and increase their savings, and women, who still occupy fewer higher paid positions, benefit more from this savings. 

The way forward 

While these activities have already had a significant impact at the two project mine sites, more can be done to advance women’s participation in mining in Rwanda, including: 

Through the use of improved lighting solutions, integration of solar power, and mainstreaming gender into company policies, procedures, and activities, Rwanda can not only reach its goal of 30% women’s participation in mining by 2027, but also improve the occupational and personal safety of miners, the security, efficiency, and productivity of the sector, and the wellbeing of communities.

Aline Providence Nkundibiza, CEO of Rwanda Women In/And Mining Organization, also contributed to this article.