NIWIMNRO delivers clean water, hope to women miners in Niger State’s Kuchiko-camp

By Nnasom David

For the first time, women miners in Kuchiko-Camp, a remote settlement in Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State, have access to clean and safe drinking water—thanks to a new borehole project delivered by the Nigerian Indigenous Women in Mining and Natural Resources Organisation (NIWIMNRO).

The borehole, commissioned on Wednesday, replaces the community’s previous water source—open mining pits contaminated by gold washing activities. For years, residents, including women and children, relied on this hazardous water for daily use, exposing them to serious health risks.

NIWIMNRO intervened after interacting with the women miners during a capacity-building workshop in Abuja. When asked about their most urgent need, the women unanimously requested clean water. This led the NIWIMNRO team to visit Kuchiko-Camp to assess the situation firsthand.

“We saw the water they were drinking—it was the same water used to wash minerals,” said Felicia Dairo, Team Lead at NIWIMNRO. “We knew we had to act.”

Without external funding, the organisation internally mobilised resources to drill the borehole. But their intervention didn’t stop there. NIWIMNRO has also launched training programs to educate women miners on safe mining practices, environmental sustainability, and leadership.

Support from the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development played a key role in identifying the community. Halima Ibrahim, Assistant Director at the Niger State Ministry of Soil and Mineral Development, said the ministry would continue working with NIWIMNRO to support women miners through cooperative formation and technical training.

“Ninety-seven percent of mining in Nigeria is done by small-scale miners, and most of them are women,” Ibrahim said. “Instead of punishing them, we want to help them mine safely and legally.”

The private sector is also taking notice. Abdoulaye Sylla of UK-based firm EnergyNet noted that the company is partnering with NIWIMNRO to promote responsible mining and improve the lives of women in mining communities.

Local residents say the impact has been immediate and transformative. Samuel Hassan, a community leader, said the new water source has significantly improved living conditions.

“Before, we drank the same water we mined with. Today, things have changed. We are grateful,” Hassan said.

He added that the shift is also changing social dynamics, with more children returning to school instead of working in the mines.

NIWIMNRO is calling on both government and private institutions to replicate the Kuchiko-Camp model in other mining communities across Nigeria, emphasizing that supporting women miners is a catalyst for sustainable development.

“Kuchiko-Camp’s story shows what can happen when women are not only seen but supported—not just with words, but with action,” Dairo concluded.

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