Community

stories

Gold panning: Searching for gold and ancestral roots by Aidalid Vergara

 

Aidalid Vergara is a 28-years-old woman leader of the Asociacion Agrominera Unida por Mindalá (AGROMIN) in Suárez, Cauca (Colombia). She works together with her group of 27 female associates panning gold from creek bed of streams around La Salvajina dam. Over 1400 families in the region earn their livelihood from this activity. Thanks to the implementation of the CRAFT code developed by the Alliance for Responsible Mining, women and men miners can formalize their activity, which ensures fair payment for their work and an extraction method that protects the environment.

We spoke with Aidalid to learn about her early beginnings in gold panning and her vision as a mother and women leader in the future.

Gold panning is something that has always been in my family. I learned it from my parents. As they both were miners, they earned their livelihood from it. What I remember most is seeing my mom panning, packing her things, looking for “minor gold dust” and always coming back home having her tools organized. As I grew up, I started doing it and I liked it.

Aidalid still remembers when her mom would work, shovel creek bed and look for rocks to put them on a pan and agitate them until getting sediments in the center of the pan to start looking for gold dust that she would later wash and delicately separate. After hours of work, that for Aidalid was spent playing with her sisters, her mother would clean all her tools together, like a weeding hoe, cans, knife, shovel, and pan, as well as, with special care, the gold she would find during the day, which she would keep knotted in a piece of cloth.

 

What does it mean to be a woman miner?

Being a woman miner means a lot to me. Through this work, I have been able to provide for my family: my 5-year-old son, who is the light of my life, and my life partner, Victor Faber. Thanks to this beautiful work, I am truly independent. We have received many valuable things from the association.

Aidalid is aware that her work is not easy as gold cannot be found every day. It is a physically demanding job that requires a lot of patience. She and the other associates alternate mining with farm work to earn enough income to support their families.

We have learned a lot from being an associate and applying the CRAFT Code. For me, being part of Agromin has been a very nice experience as we feel heard and we have greater participation in the community. We have also learned to appreciate our work and think about our own growth as a community. We have learned about accounting, money management and business plans.

Aidalid together with Maria Virginia and Milfa, as well as all other associates, give first priority to secure resources for the education and future of their children and continue building wellbeing in their community for new generations.

We want to give them what they need every day so they can enjoy being children”, said Aidalid as she picked up her tools and went back home with her coworkers. Laughing, they made their way to the boats to cross La Salvajina while sharing their stories and a snack of arepa and meat. The association is a family that thrives on collaboration, endurance and warmth of its associates.

Share This