December 2008, Maureen Upton; World Gold Council
This report focuses on how gold mining companies are fighting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Gold mining companies are particularly affected by the triple disease threat of HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria. It is hard to think of any other industry that faces a situation where 30% of its employees in certain locations are infected with a fatal disease such as HIV, or where a similar percentage of the surrounding community may be infected with a serious illness such as malaria. Furthermore, some of the unintended consequences of mining activities can make the fight against disease an uphill battle.
The four companies profiled in this report, in four different countries, have tackled these diseases in line with international best practices including those of the ICMM, and continue to do so. They have made great strides in many areas. Highlights of the progress detailed in this report include:
- In Ghana, Newmont has seen new HIV infections decline from an average of four per month in 2005-2006 to two per month January-September 2008, accompanied by a 40% reduction in malaria infections in the past year.
- Gold Fields in Ghana has seen 88% of its employees undergo testing, with a prevalence rate of less than 1%, well below Ghana’s national average.
- The success of Barrick’s VCT center in Nyamongo, Tanzania, has seen it selected as a national testing site for the country’s recently-launched national VCT campaign.
- In January 2005, when AngloGold Ashanti launched a malaria control program at its Obuasi mine in Ghana, it set an ambitious target of a 50% reduction in malaria in two years. By September 2007, it had achieved a 73% reduction.
