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Mongolia’s massive gold reserves, discovered post 1990, now constitute 20 percent of the country’s GDP. An estimated 100,000 people, many former herders who have left their livestock behind, work as illegal miners - called "ninja miners". These miners produce more gold than the industrial mining sector. Experts estimate that most of this gold is smuggled across Mongolia's 2,900-mile border with China for sale in the Chinese domestic market.
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Ariana Lindquist
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MONGOLIA : NINJA MINERS
Mongolia’s massive gold reserves, discovered post 1990, now constitute 20 percent of the country’s GDP. An estimated 100,000 people, many former herders who have left their livestock behind, work as illegal miners - called "ninja miners". These miners produce more gold than the industrial mining sector. Experts estimate that most of this gold is smuggled across Mongolia's 2,900-mile border with China for sale in the Chinese domestic market.