600 000 artisanal miners set for safety training 

Source: 600 000 artisanal miners set for safety training – herald

Debra Matabvu

Around 600 000 artisanal and small-scale miners are to be trained and licenced under a Government programme aimed at improving safety and reducing the growing number of fatal mining accidents caused by the failure to observe basic mining protocols.

The initiative, which is expected to professionalise the artisanal and small-scale mining sector, will equip miners with technical skills, safety awareness and operational discipline while linking mining licences to formal training.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development, Dr Thomas Utete Wushe, said the programme forms part of a broader strategy to formalise the artisanal and small-scale sector, which now accounts for more than 60 percent of Zimbabwe’s total gold production.

The Government, Dr Wushe said, was determined to make mining safer while improving productivity and curbing illegal mining.

In recent years, Zimbabwe has recorded fatal mining accidents, many involving artisanal miners operating in unsafe shafts, abandoned mines and unstable excavations without adequate training or proper safety equipment.

To reinforce compliance, the Government is considering a proposal by the Zimbabwe School of Mines to make its Certificate in Principles of Responsible Small-Scale Mining a statutory requirement for obtaining and retaining a small-scale mining title.

Dr Wushe said this would embed safety training into the country’s mining laws and ensure that only trained miners are licenced to operate.

The Government, he added, has also developed an Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Strategy that prioritises mine safety, environmental rehabilitation and financial inclusion.

“This strategy focuses on environmental rehabilitation, mine safety enforcement and financial inclusion for miners,” he said.

Apart from the training initiative, the authorities are also reviewing legislation to simplify compliance for small-scale miners.

“A major part of the formalisation drive is the overhaul of the legal framework to make compliance easier and more accessible for artisanal and small-scale operators. The ministry has gazetted the new Mines and Minerals Bill to modernise the mining regulatory framework.

“This includes proposals to streamline claim registration and dispute resolution, potentially by removing pegging procedures from the Act and placing them under ministerial regulations.”

To curb illegal mining and mineral leakages, the Government is intensifying operations against gold and lithium smuggling by strengthening surveillance at border posts, improving co-ordination between law enforcement agencies and imposing stiffer penalties on offenders.

Police have also been deployed to protect rivers and other environmentally sensitive areas from illegal riverbed mining, while equipment used in such operations has been confiscated.

Dr Wushe acknowledged that the current number of mining inspectors remained inadequate and said efforts were underway to strengthen the inspectorate and improve monitoring of mining operations across the country.

“In a decisive move, State authorities have deployed police to protect rivers and other environmentally sensitive areas from illegal riverbed mining, a practice that has been costing the country up to US$1 billion annually,” he added.

The Government is working closely with Fidelity Gold Refinery to improve market access for artisanal miners through an expanded network of gold-buying centres.

Policies allowing small-scale miners to retain 100 percent of their foreign currency earnings have also helped support growth in the sector.

Dr Wushe said the overall objective was to transform artisanal and small-scale mining into a safer, more productive and fully formalised sector capable of making an even greater contribution to the economy.

“The ministry’s approach is a holistic one, seeking to bring a vital, but often dangerous sector into the formal economy by creating a supportive regulatory environment, providing the skills miners need and enforcing the law against those who operate outside it.”