Minister Zhemu Soda
By Dickson Bandera
Government has not banned artisanal small scale mining but instead directed a break inspired by the need to promote safety of miners during the risky rainy season.
This was said by the Minister of Mines and Mining Development Hon Zhemu Soda this Thursday afternoon when he addressed a follow up media meeting, three days after his address on the strategic break for artisanal small scale miners.
The media briefing was also attended by mining industry stakeholders including Chamber of Mines, Miners for ED, Zimbabwe Miners Federation, among others.
In his address, Hon Zhemu Soda said government had not banned mining, as had been reported in some sections but came up with the precautionary measures to save life of the miners during the risky times.
“As government we would like to set the record straight that we did not ban mining but we have given precaution for artisanal miners to take a break since the heavy rains that we have just witnessed makes small scale artisanal mining risky,” he said.
Honourable Soda emphasized that safety and security of miners was government’s top priority hence government had seen it necessary for miners to take this strategic break.
The precautionary measure, which resonates with president Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Responsible Mining Initiative launched last year, is informed by the risks associated with small scale mining during the rainy season.
Artisanal Miners are confronted with challenges such as poor mechanization, lack of capital and lack of technical consultancy to inform their operations, but government has put in place a string of measures to ensure that the sector is cushioned.
In this break time, government has scheduled training programmes to equip the miners with skills and knowledge relevant in their day to day operations.
Said Minister Soda, “In the meantime, we have scheduled training for the miners which will be carried out by experts in our mining provinces,” he added.
The training will benefit the small scale artisanal miners at a time government has scaled up interventions to ensure sanity and portability in the mining sector.
Minister Soda also said government had put in place a loan fund which is meant to assist small scale artisanal miners with equipment and the setting up of Gold Centres in different mining areas was meant to, among other things, help the miners with expert consultants in communities, just in the same manner agricultural extension officers are located in agriculture communities.
Government has tightened the screws in the wake of a spate of mine accidents which include collapses and curve in of small scale mines, with most accidents being linked to noncompliance with the law.
In 2023, president Emmerson Mnangagwa launched the Responsible Mining Initiative at the State House in Harare where he said irresponsible mining will not be tolerated.
The mining sector is expected to play a pivotal role in the attainment of the country’s vision of being an Upper Middle Income Economy by 2030 as enshrined in the National Development Strategy1 (NDS1) (2021-2025).
