Ghana - Bolgatanga - Small community scale gold mining

A man is relaxing next to a hole leading into a gold mine, another coming out back into the day light. The mines in the small community near Bolgatange in Northern Ghana are dug with shovels and spades and held up by timber, all very precarious. The mine shafts go deep into the ground and run along under the surrounding fields. The small community which has sprung up around the gold finds consists of poor people from all over Northern Ghana,most of them now stuck, not making much money and in dept to their gold dealers. (Photo by In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images)