Officials announced Tuesday that a gold mine collapsed in Ethiopia’s Oromia regional state, killing at least seven people.
According to the state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate, 11 others were critically injured in the accident, in addition to the fatalities.
The incident occurred when artisanal gold miners were caught up in the incident and buried underground while looking for gold.
Ethiopia’s mining income in the fiscal year 2020-2021 was $682 million. This came from the minerals and gemstones mining sectors. According to estimates from the Ethiopian Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, gold exports accounted for the majority of the revenue.
In recent years, the East African country has launched a public awareness campaign to tackle illegal mining, which has been blamed in part for Ethiopia’s low mining income in past years.
