By Tapiwa Machemedze
MINERS for Economic Development has been launched in Mazowe with thousands of small scale miners set to benefit from a tribute arrangement with Jumbo mine in a move targeted at increasing formalisation.
Collaboration between large mining companies and small scale miners is pushing the mining industry closer to attaining the US$12-billion mining vision with miners in Mazowe poised to increase formalisation and production through a tribute arrangement with Metallon’s Jumbo mine.
“Today marks a different chapter as the mine has initiated and designed programs to empower them and assist the Ministry of Mines and ZMF in an initative to formalise the sector,” said Jumbo Mine Manager, Mr Allen Mushayavanhu.
Officially Launching the Miners for Economic Development, the Minister of Mines and Mining Development Honourable Winston Chitando urged miners to adhere to safe mining procedure and commended Jumbo mine for assisting miners with formalisation.
“In 2018, our mineral industry was US$2.7 billion and there was a target to get to US$12 billion, so it is pleasing to note there is now Miners for ED to support the President’s ’s vision,” he said.
Zimbabwe Miners Federation President Henrietta Rushwaya highlighted the federation will ensure small scale miners are better capacitated to exploit their mines so as to ramp up production
“By 2030, all miners should be better off, they should have something tangible and this can only happen if they are operating legally, in line with environmental laws and in line with government’s mining industry requirements,” said Rushwaya.
The launch of the Miners for Economic development comes at a time government is working on establishing a gold service centre in Mazowe to ease processing and remittances.
Recently small scale miners under the Zimbabwe Miners’ Federation received another tribute to mine lithium at Sandawana mine from Kuvimba house.
