Peter Wafula
Peter Wafula reports from Busia, Namayingo and the wider eastern gold belt, covering pit safety, licensing disputes and the daily economics of artisanal mining. His fieldwork underpins much of UMT's district-level reporting on how formalisation is experienced on the ground.
Based in Busia, Uganda
- Busia and Namayingo goldfields
- Mine safety
- Artisanal livelihoods
Reporting by Peter Wafula
- Safety · August 26, 2026
CAR pit collapse: hard lessons for Uganda
More than 100 artisanal miners died when a pit caved in at Zamboye in western Central African Republic. The tunnelling method that failed there is the same one used across Busia, Namayingo and Mubende.
- Employment · August 7, 2026
Wagagai reports 2,000 jobs as Busia output ramps
Commissioned by the President in August 2025, the Busia project is now the country's largest single gold operation. Local hiring numbers are real; the skills pipeline is the harder test.
- Mine safety · August 4, 2026
Namayingo collapse: retrieval operation ends
The recovery effort at an abandoned pit in Namayingo District closed with six deaths confirmed, renewing pressure on district authorities to seal disused artisanal workings.
- Safety · July 19, 2026
Namayingo gold pit collapse: police search for buried miners
Now, several miners are feared dead after a closed gold mine pit collapsed on July 18, 2026 in Mabuka Village, Bugana Parish, Bukana Sub-county, Namayingo District, prompting a police-led search for people trapped underground.
- Employment · April 19, 2024
Wagagai launches Uganda's first gold refinery
President Museveni commissioned Wagagai Mining's Alupe gold plant in April 2024, marking the country's first integrated large-scale gold mining and refining operation.
- Employment · August 2, 2023
Wagagai gold refinery to create 3,000 jobs in Busia
On the ground, the Chinese-backed Wagagai Mining plant in Alupe, Busia is completing what officials describe as the country's first full gold value chain, from exploration through refining, with more than 3,000 direct jobs expected at full capacity.