The improvements needed and opportunities available for women in mining have been increasingly acknowledged over the last decade. A variety of initiatives have aimed to increase the number and improve the position of women in both large-scale and artisanal mining, in line with global adoption of SDG 5 on gender equality and women’s empowerment. This panel of experts discuss recent efforts by industry, governments, civil society organisations and international development partners and their effectiveness in attracting, retaining and promoting women across the mining industry.
Panellists also highlight gaps in this analysis resulting from the lack of global, disaggregated and reliable data on women in mining. The paucity of disclosure and inconsistency of estimation criteria and methodology hinder assessments of progress on gender equality in the mining industry, as well as the emergence of evidence-based advocacy for women’s participation in mining and its leadership globally. This has become the focus of new proposals and coordination among stakeholders and policy shapers, which are discussed by the panel.