State of the sector: Worker health, safety and equality in ASM — report Stock image. The launch of Delve: 2020 State of the Artisanal and Small Scale Mining (ASM) Sector report this spring shone a spotlight on working conditions, health, safety, and gender equality challenges in the industry that employs over 44 million people worldwide. The report was produced through a partnership with Pact and the World Bank, and the authors worked on it for over a year, collaborating with 59 contributors who shared experiences through multiple voices. Sign Up for the Africa, Europe & Middle East Digest Sign Up The report, with a mandate to improve working conditions within ASM, took on the challenge of bringing a structural analysis to a massive and unregulated, informal industry that employs millions at a subsistence level.