MILF targets overhaul to strengthen support for small-scale miners

The Mining Industry Loan Fund (MILF) is undergoing a significant transformation to better support the country’s small-scale miners and facilitate their growth into medium and large-scale enterprises.

This overhaul is driven by stakeholders advocating for enhanced financial access for the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASGM) sector, which is vital to Zimbabwe’s mineral production and job creation.

Speaking at the Dialogue on Access to Finance for ASGM recently hosted by planetGOLD Zimbabwe under the theme “Unlocking Responsible Finance for Formalised ASGM: Pathways to Investment, Business Growth and Mercury-Free Mining” MILF manager Mr Rangarirai Mhazo said the fund’s core mandate has always been to support small-scale miners, but reforms were now necessary to align it with the evolving business environment after years of limited activity caused by inadequate funding.

“The Mining Industry Loan Fund has been there since 1924 and it has been in existence all along up to this end. Its primary objective was to assist small-scale miners and currently that’s the focus to support and capacitate small-scale miners to transition from small-scale miners to medium to large-scale producers,” he said.

Mr Mhazo said although the fund has existed for over a century, it requires urgent restructuring to ensure it effectively responds to the needs of the mining sector.

“So in that end, like I am saying, it has been there for some while. What is needed now is to restructure it, to realign it with the current trends in terms of business because there has been no review of the constitution itself and its procedures. After all, the fund was literally dormant for some time because of a lack of funding.”

He said transforming the fund was now a priority, with authorities planning to review both its mandate and operational framework.

“So the issue of transformation of the fund is critical and it is very urgent as of now so that we review even the mandate of the fund itself.”

Mr Mhazo said the review would also focus on making the fund more accessible by revisiting the eligibility criteria while ensuring its long-term sustainability.

“Because our mandate is to support and capacitate small-scale miners we are again going to review the eligibility criteria such that it is encompassing, it is not going to give many challenges to our miners but however we should then not lose focus that this is a revolving fund.”

He stressed that while the fund seeks to empower miners through affordable financing, beneficiaries must honour their repayment obligations to ensure the facility continues supporting future applicants.

“The miners need to pay back such that the fund remains alive. So as much as we are going to capacitate small-scale miners we are not going to lose track of the capacity of the miners to pay back so that the fund remains alive because the moment the miners do not pay back, the fund will then die because it is a revolving fund.”