“Just Two Days of Work Equals a Month’s Salary”… Where Young Cubans Are Flocking After Abandoning Their Livelihoods
Just Two Days’ Work Means a Month’s Pay
High Returns Draw Young People to Gold Mining
Villages Suffer from Illegal Gold Mining
Rising Crime, Mounting Environmental Concerns
Due to U.S. sanctions and chronic economic hardship, Cuban residents whose livelihoods have become increasingly precarious are turning to gold mining activities that are prohibited by law to earn money.
“Just Two Days of Mining Is a Month’s Salary”… Young People Abandon Their Work to Mine Gold
According to Spanish-language media Infobae and other foreign news outlets on September 10 (local time), illegal gold mining is rapidly spreading, particularly across rural areas in eastern Cuba such as Camagüey, Las Tunas, and Ciego de Ávila.
Under Cuban law, gold is managed as a national strategic resource, so only state-run or foreign joint-venture companies with government authorization are permitted to mine it. However, as more residents lose their means of earning a living, they are increasingly turning to unauthorized mining.
The main reason residents are engaging in illegal mining is its profitability. On the local market, 1 gram of refined gold is traded for more than 60,000 Cuban pesos (about 110,000 won). Even on bad days, when daily earnings are as low as 3,000 pesos, the amount illegal miners make far exceeds the labor income of an average Cuban worker.
According to Cuba’s National Statistics Office, the official average monthly wage last year was 6,930 pesos. This means just two days of illicit mining can bring in earnings well above a month’s salary.
Local miner Jesus said, “It doesn’t have to be a large gold nugget. Even finding a rock with traces of gold or low-quality gold dust is enough to make money.”
Given the opportunity for high returns, even young people from the region who raised livestock are abandoning their traditional work to participate in illegal gold mining.
Illegal Gold Mining Spreads, Leading to Worsening Security and Environmental Concerns
As illegal gold mining spreads, numerous side effects have emerged. Above all, public safety has deteriorated. In shadowy areas where police find it difficult to intervene, disputes over mining rights have broken out, leading to the rise of armed private security and a spate of violence and crime in villages.
Those engaged in illegal mining are reluctant to seek help from the police because the activity itself is illegal. As a result, residents have increasingly become targets for theft and robbery, prompting them to take turns guarding the mines themselves.
Eloisa Rivero, a resident of Guáimaro, said, “The village is full of outsiders, and some immediately spend their new-found money on alcohol, causing trouble. Fights and reckless motorbike races have become part of daily life, but the police are doing nothing.”
There are also growing concerns about environmental pollution. During illegal mining, miners wash gold-bearing soil and rocks with water and use mercury to separate out the gold. Mercury is highly toxic, and if it enters the soil or local water sources, it can cause contamination.
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Despite widespread crackdowns by Cuban authorities, resulting in the arrest of hundreds of people and the confiscation of equipment, illegal mining shows no signs of abating.
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