CARE: Credit Access for Responsible Extraction

Artisanal gold mining in Sierra Leone employs hundreds of thousands of people, including many women, but remains largely informal and neglected by financial institutions. This leaves miners reliant on exploitative money lenders who charge effective interest rates up to 200% and require miners to sell their gold at steep discounts. These arrangements perpetuate poverty, pressure miners to cut corners on safety and environmental regulations, and trap them in cycles of indebtedness.

The Credit Access for Responsible Extraction (CARE) project aims to partner with local microfinance group Munafa to provide artisanal miners with formal credit at better terms than current money lenders. These loans will include minimal non-financial conditions promoting formalization, worker safety, and environmental compliance, verified through regular audits. By allowing miners to sell gold at market prices while meeting basic standards, the project offers a scalable, market-based solution that provides positive incentives for sustainable practices rather than relying on ineffective top-down enforcement in a weak state context.