The gold diggers wash the soil during the day and all night, hoping that it reveals the precious metal. The majority of prospectors arrive illegally from neighboring countries like Zimbabwe. The gold nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. A Lebanese merchant usually pays up to 1200 to 1300 meticals (44 to 48 American dollars) for one gram of gold. Mozambique 2013.

Those who carry the sacks from the mine to the river bank walk up to 1000 meters with the bags on their head. They get 15 meticals (half of an American dollar) per sack they deliver to the river. On average, they deliver 48 to 50 sacks a day Mozambique 2013.

The gold diggers work all day shifts and produce on average 2 to 3 grams of gold a day. On more productive days, they produce up to 15-30 grams. The work is demanding when the gold diggers get their break it is well spent usually on a quick sleep. Mozambique 2013.

The gold rush in Manica, the heart of Mozambique, has attracted the attention of workers from surrounding countries with rumors of a foreign merchants paying up to 1200 to 1300 meticals (44 to 48 American dollars) for one gram of gold. Mozambique 2013.

Women are often sitting at the river side with a young children in their laps.

The gold diggers wash the soil during the day and all night, hoping that it reveals the precious metal. The majority of prospectors arrive illegally from neighboring countries like Zimbabwe. The gold nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and rivers where the water is no longer suitable for drinking and the ground infertile. The rivers become heavily polluted from mercury used to extract the gold, poisoning aquatic life in the river and posing a serious health risks for the gold diggers. The diggers work on their own account and after selling the gold they must give half of the money to the owner of the land they found it on.

Most of the gold diggers have a nomadic life with there families and keep traveling along the river where they suspect gold then set up housing and work the rivers until the next location. Mozambique 2013.

They are washing the soil, day and night, hoping that it hides gold. Seventy to eighty percent of all prospectors arrive illegally from the neighboring country of Zimbabwe. The nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and river water no more suitable for drinking nor watering, along with the treatment of the gold diggers' damaged health. Gold rush in Manica, in the heart of Mozambique.

The river becomes heavily polluted for they use mercury to extract the gold. The mercury comes mostly from Spain. In many cases, mercury poisoning was found in fish caught in the local rivers and sometimes even in human beings.

They are washing the soil, day and night, hoping that it hides gold. Seventy to eighty percent of all prospectors arrive illegally from the neighboring country of Zimbabwe. The nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and river water no more suitable for drinking nor watering, along with the treatment of the gold diggers' damaged health. Gold rush in Manica, in the heart of Mozambique.

Today's lunch is xima, an inexpensive and popular food of many African countries, made of cassava.

They are washing the soil, day and night, hoping that it hides gold. Seventy to eighty percent of all prospectors arrive illegally from the neighboring country of Zimbabwe. The nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and river water no more suitable for drinking nor watering, along with the treatment of the gold diggers' damaged health. Gold rush in Manica, in the heart of Mozambique.

They build artificial bases and dams at the river bank where they wash the soil day and night to find the gold.

They are washing the soil, day and night, hoping that it hides gold. Seventy to eighty percent of all prospectors arrive illegally from the neighboring country of Zimbabwe. The nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and river water no more suitable for drinking nor watering, along with the treatment of the gold diggers' damaged health. Gold rush in Manica, in the heart of Mozambique.

Those who carry the sacks from the mine to the river bank walk sometimes up to 1000 meters with the bag on their head. They get 15 meticals (half of an American dollar) per sack they deliver to the river. On average, they deliver 48 to 50 sacks a day

They are washing the soil, day and night, hoping that it hides gold. Seventy to eighty percent of all prospectors arrive illegally from the neighboring country of Zimbabwe. The nuggets, belonging to the state, end up in the hands of Nigerian, Somalian, Zimbabwean, Israeli and Lebanese merchants. The state is left with the ground and river water no more suitable for drinking nor watering, along with the treatment of the gold diggers' damaged health. Gold rush in Manica, in the heart of Mozambique.

They are digging at a depth of 15 to 20 meters under the ground, in an extensive tunnel system.