On the path approaching the Kalimbi mine, halfway down the mountain, there is a sharp descent where Tunnel 20 has been chipped out.
The photos of Fiona Lloyd-Davies in the DRC were supported by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
The Kalimbi Mine in South Kivu is in the eastern DRC.
A miner stands outside Tunnel 20.
Mahenga has been working at this mine since he was young. “I started when I was 12 years old,” he said. “The problem is the gas we smell here.I’d say that I’ve got used to the job despite everything.”
Nyamirhali, a digger, said soldiers used to beat up diggers and steal their minerals.
Kitambala Azwata Edouard is the manager of WMC, a treatment centre in Bukavu, South Kivu. These barrels are filled with processed tin ready for export.
The washing station is on the mountain. Here, raw tin ore and cassiterite is washed.
A washer separates the tin ore.
After they are washed, the larger pieces of ore are crushed.
The washing process can take several hours.
Workers refine cassiterite. It must be separated from the rest of the grit and put into barrels before it is sold and exported.
Middleman, or negotiant, Kasole Sanvura Vie Sainte buys the raw ore from diggers.
A miner exits the Kalimbi mine in South Kivu, DRC.
Lyndsey Gilpin is a former Staff Writer for TechRepublic, covering sustainability and entrepreneurship. She's co-author of the book Follow the Geeks.
