Gold mountain in Africa | Mountain where soil is ’60-90% gold’ discovered in Congo, villagers flock area with shovels and pickaxes

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has witnessed something right out of an adventure or treasure hunt story recently.

The country authorities have had to ban mining in a village after a mountain made of gold-rich deposits was discovered.

A video shared on social media by freelance journalist Ahmad Algohbary shows dozens of villagers flooding the mountain in Luhihi, which is located in Congo’s South Kivu province, following the discovery of the gold-rich area.

In one of the videos, the locals are seen using shovels and other tools to dig the ground in a bid to extract gold from the soil. Some were even seen using their bare hands.

Watch it here:

“A video from the Republic of the Congo documents the biggest surprise for some villagers in this country, as an entire mountain filled with gold was discovered! They dig the soil inside the gold deposits and take them to their homes in order to wash the dirt& extract the gold.” Algohbary wrote on Twitter.

In a follow-up video by Algohbary, locals can be seen washing the dirt off the precious metal and collecting them in metal containers.

The influx of diggers was so huge that it put a lot of pressure on the small village, said Venant Burume Muhigirwa, South Kivu Mines Minister. Due to the massive influx, the authorities were forced to ban mining in the village.

The order, which was confirmed by Muhigirwa, said all mining activities were suspended until further notice,

Subsistence mining is what has been seen in the video that has been shared on social media. The process, which involves extracting minerals with basic tools, is very common across the  Democratic Republic of Congo.

Congo has always had a rich reserve of natural deposits like timber, diamonds, and minerals.

As for gold, the process of extraction followed in the country is artisanal gold mining.