The global price of gold has soared in the last few years, and even in some of the most remote parts of Nicaragua, it has not gone unnoticed. Entire communities located along rivers are now panning for gold. On a good day, a family can find half a dozen flakes that might be worth twenty dollars—that’s a lot in a local economy that traditionally does not use cash. The gold season only lasts a couple of months during the dry season when the rivers are low, so people are out in the rivers, panning during almost every daylight hour.

Entire communities located along rivers are now panning for gold. On a good day, a family can find half a dozen flakes that might be worth twenty dollars—that’s a lot in a local economy that traditionally does not use cash. The gold season only lasts a couple of months during the dry season when the rivers are low, so people are out in the rivers, panning during almost every daylight hour. It is hard work and dangerous, too. Standing in rushing water up to your waist is often where the best deposits are found. At first glance, gold panning seems like a great windfall. It’s a welcome new influx of cash to supplement family income for purchasing things that cannot be grown or produced at home. But the gold boom has also brought grief.

Five years ago there were 200 gold-panners on the river; in 2012 that number rose to an estimated 1,500

In the past couple of years, the number of people infected with HIV and AIDS in some parts of Nicaragua has risen along with the price of gold. Once a family has accumulated enough gold flakes to cash them in, a family member has to travel several hundred kilometers down river to the nearest town to sell them to gold buyers. Not unlike the gold rushes that occurred in Canada or the US in the previous century, a host of social evils await the person that is not accustomed to managing cash. Enticed by liquor and prostitution, many fall prey to these temptations before they make the return trip to home. And the HIV virus goes home with them, multiplying the number of infections with spouses and newborn children. To have HIV is a serious enough matter, but the social discrimination that comes along with the disease is oppressive.

This past year, World Renew implemented a pilot project in Nicaragua to train church leaders as discussion leaders in the traditionally taboo subject of sexual behavior and the consequences of prostitution and infidelity. The leaders learned to compare these practices with the Biblical model of healthy boundaries for sexual relationships. The facilitators then designed culturally sensitive training materials and surveys that focus on prevention, targeting those between 13 and 22 years old, and 23 to 44 years old. The facilitators also encourage churches to take action to support those who are homebound by the virus. This past month we evaluated the project.

The surveys indicated that there had been significant changes in the learner’s knowledge, attitudes, and behavior relating to sexual behavior. We then spent two days upriver listening to the testimonies that came out in focus groups to determine firsthand the kind of impact the project was having. Reynoso Velázquez, a 25-year-old youth counselor in his church, attended the training and replicated the workshop with 40 other men in his congregation. This is his story.

“I accepted the invitation to become a facilitator primarily to show love to others because one day, I could find myself in the same situation as those that have HIV. Thanks to God, I am healthy but when I imagine that I could be where they are, it motivates me to help them and share what I’ve learned about HIV. The participants in the workshop said that this was the first time in our church that there was an invitation to talk about this topic.”

On our return trip home from visiting these communities, five women (four of them balancing a baby on their hip) joined us in our boat. It wasn’t until later that we realized that these women were HIV carriers who were on their way to the nearest health clinic for antiretroviral treatments. Their presence and need confirmed one of our evaluation recommendations to extend the project to ten more communities in the coming year, before the next panning season.

Prayer Request:

• Pray that the Biblical model of healthy relationships between men and women takes root among those who are panning for gold on the river, and that they can flee from enticement. (Proverbs 7: 6-27)

Mark VanderWees