Women in Mining Nigeria (WIMIN) has issued an urgent statement following the deaths of 37 artisanal miners while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Minna, Niger State.

The organization is calling for an independent investigation into the deaths and, more broadly, for greater formalization and protection of artisanal miners.

Although this particular incident did not involve gemstone mining, the issues raised by WIMIN concerning artisanal mining, poverty, formalization, safety, child labor and enforcement are relevant to the gem and jewelry industry. Nigeria has an important artisanal gemstone mining sector and is a recognized source of Paraíba tourmaline.

The following is the Women in Mining Nigeria press release, published substantially as received.

WOMEN IN MINING NIGERIA (WIMIN) CONDEMNS THE TRAGIC DEATH OF 37 ARTISANAL MINERS IN NSCDC CUSTODY IN MINNA; DEMANDS JUSTICE, ARTISANAL FORMALISATION, AND URGENT HUMAN RIGHTS REFORMS

ABUJA, NIGERIA — September 19, 2026 —
Women in Mining Nigeria (WIMIN) strongly condemns the tragic and preventable deaths of 37 artisanal miners who lost their lives while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State.

The victims were among scores of individuals arrested during recent enforcement operations on September 15 and 16 in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas. WIMIN extends its deepest condolences to the grieving families, particularly the devastated mothers and women who have lost their sons, brothers, and primary breadwinners to this horrific incident. Reports indicating that many of the deceased were teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 make this catastrophe even more heartbreaking.

Condemning Inhumane Custodial Conditions and State Response

While the NSCDC initially attributed the mass casualty to an unverified “disease outbreak,” distressing accounts from survivors and intelligence reports point firmly to severe overcrowding, extreme heat, dehydration, and suffocation within a poorly ventilated facility holding up to 65 individuals in a single cell. Survivors recounted banging on the doors for help while their peers collapsed, requests that were tragically ignored by guards on duty.

WIMIN aligns with the positions of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) in stating that every human being, regardless of the allegations against them, is entitled to due process and the fundamental right to life. Criminalising poverty and utilizing lethal containment strategies against artisanal miners is an arbitrary deprivation of life and an affront to international human rights standards.

Speaking on the tragedy, the Founder and National President of WIMIN, Engr. Janet Adeyemi, stated:
“We cannot continue to use iron fists and lethal containment strategies against young citizens who are driven into mining pits by the sheer desperation for survival. Mining, for these teenagers and young men, is an escape from hunger and extreme hardship. It is a profound injustice to criminalise poverty. When the state treats the desperate quest for a livelihood as a capital offense—resulting in the suffocation and death of dozens in custody—we have failed fundamentally as a nation. The government must shift its focus from aggressive militarisation to human-centric formalisation.”

Furthermore, WIMIN strongly condemns the subsequent use of force and tear gas against grieving families and community members who took to the streets of Minna demanding answers.

Grounding the Crisis in Socio-Economic Reality: The Statistics of Poverty and Minerals in Niger State

WIMIN emphasizes that the actions of these young men cannot be viewed in isolation from the crushing poverty that plagues the region.

According to official data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Niger State experiences a severe socio-economic deficit:
• 69.1% Multidimensional Poverty Rate: Nearly 7 out of every 10 residents in Niger State live in multidimensional poverty, meaning they are systematically deprived of basic healthcare, education, and adequate living standards.
• 72.8% Extreme Poverty Level: World Bank data indicates that 72.8% of the state’s population lives below the baseline extreme poverty line ($2.15/day), rising sharply to 92.9% living under $3.65 a day.

The Pull of Wealth Beneath the Soil

Niger State sits on vastly rich deposits of gold, lithium, and tantalite. These high-value minerals create an inevitable beacon of economic hope for a desperate population. With thousands of families suffering from severe food insecurity and basic infrastructure deficits, the extraction of these minerals by hand is not a choice of leisure, it is a mandatory lifeline for day-to-day survival.

WIMIN’s Recommendations to the Government to Prevent Future Occurrences

To address the root causes of this crisis and ensure that such an institutional failure never happens again, WIMIN urges the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Niger State Government to take the following immediate actions:

1. Conduct an Independent, Transparent Judicial Inquiry: While WIMIN acknowledges the suspension of the Niger State NSCDC Commandant and the initiation of a police probe, we demand a fully independent judicial panel of inquiry. The autopsies at the Minna General Hospital must be monitored by independent medical experts to provide absolute transparency to the families.

2. Prosecute and Hold Perpetrators Accountable: Anyone found guilty of negligence, duty failure, or the abuse of power within the detention facility must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

3. Comprehensive Overhaul of Detention Conditions: The Ministry of Interior must launch an immediate audit of all paramilitary and security agency detention cells nationwide to eradicate overcrowding, ensure humane ventilation, and establish strict protocols for emergency medical responses.

4. Shift from Criminalisation to Formalisation: Government must recognize that economic survival is driving youth into mining pits. Instead of treating artisanal mining solely as a criminal enterprise to be suppressed by gunpoint, the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development must accelerate the formalisation, organization, and cooperative bundling of artisanal miners started. Providing them with legal frameworks, training, and safer equipment will safeguard both state assets and human lives. The Ministry must also ensure that the good initiatives of the ministry is not destroyed by overzealous mining marshals who are not trained to manage such crisis.

5. Protect Vulnerable Children and Support Bereaved Families: The state must enforce stricter child labor protections within the mining sector, providing educational alternatives so that teenagers are not driven to dangerous mining pits. The government must also adequately compensate the affected families for the loss of their loved ones.

About Women in Mining Nigeria (WIMIN): Women in Mining Nigeria (WIMIN) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for the rights, training, safety, formalisation, and economic empowerment of women and youth within the solid minerals sector across Nigeria.

Tap here to go directly to the WIMIN website for more.