Bulawayo mining sector attend mines and minerals amendment bill indaba

Business Reporter

STAKEHOLDERS in the mining sector in Bulawayo are today expected to make inputs into the revised Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill.

Last week, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and various stakeholders met in the city for a capacity-building engagement to unpack the contents of the Bill.

The bill went through its first reading in the National Assembly last week.

Now the committee is rolling out public hearings.

Portfolio Committee chair Edmund Mkaratigwa expressed optimisim that the bill will sail through before the 9th Parliament end.

He assured stakeholders that their views will be taken into consideration.

The bill, among other issues, covers transparency in the licensing regime of mining titles, recognition of provincial mining directors, and devolution of mining sector administration royalty, equality, and equity of mining fees across provinces and local authorities.

Under Schedule 2 of the Mines Bill, nine minerals have been explicitly identified as strategic and these include diamonds, rare earth minerals, lithium, and copper, nuclear energy source materials such as uranium; mineral oils, gaseous hydrocarbons, coal and nickel.