Chronicle Editor
Leonard Ncube, Senior Reporter
THE re-opening of Kamativi Tin Mine in Matabeleland North Province has revived businesses in the former tin mining community, renewing hope among residents in the area.
Kamativi Tin Mine closed in 1994 when international prices of tin plummeted to unsustainable levels. Kamativi is located 28 km off the Bulawayo to Victoria Falls Road along Binga Road and is about 312 km from Bulawayo. For three decades, Kamativi turned into a ghost town and residents resorted to vandalising infrastructure particularly electricity and water infrastructure leaving the area with no power and piped water.
The mine has re-opened, not as a tin mine but as a lithium producer under Kamativi Mining Company (KMC). Kamativi Mining Company is a Joint Venture (JV) company operated and controlled by Sichuan PD Technology Group, a subsidiary of a Chinese listed entity, Yahua Group.
Yahua Group is ranked fifth in the world for being a top lithium hydro-peroxide and explosives supplier. The Group has over 6 000 employees in 70 subsidiaries distributed throughout Australia, China, Ethiopia, Namibia, New Zealand, and Zimbabwe.
The local joint venture partner is Defold Mine (Private) Limited.
Kamativi Mining Company started operations in 2019 and owns 100 percent of the mineral rights of the Kamativi mining area. KMC is mainly responsible for lithium exploration as well as mining and mineral processing of the Group within the greater Kamativi area.
A visit to the area recently showed signs of a new lease of life as residents went about various vending businesses. The informal market that had over the years been abandoned has been resuscitated while various shops which had dilapidated are now operational.
KMC recently refurbished the old Kamativi bus terminus and handed it over to the community to allow long distance buses to resume driving into Kamativi from the Cross Dete-Binga main road. This is expected to reduce the distance travelled by residents to the nearest bus stop.
KMC is still negotiating with respective bus operators to consider dropping-off and picking-up passengers at the recently renovated Kamativi bus station. The Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco), CAG Travellers Couches and Stallion Cruise have been engaged and the matter is still under consideration from these bus operators.
Backyard eateries have also re-opened while there have been several inquiries from businesspersons seeking to apply for liquor and shop licenses to operate bars and grocery outlets in the area.
Local vendors are also elated by increased buying power as they can now take care of their families from vending.
While the community still faces serious water challenges which is also compounded by a lack of electricity due to vandalism of equipment, there is hope among residents for improved livelihoods as the investment by KMC compliments the Government’s development agenda as enunciated by the Second Republic’s Vision for an upper middle income society by 2030.
Ms Mavis Moyo, an elderly resident who has stayed in Kamativi for over four decades said there was a new lease of life in the area.
“We have been surviving on vending but now that the mine is open, we hope things get better because it will mean more business. The re-opening of the mine has reignited hope for us and our children are now employed which also increases buying power which is benefitting us vendors as we can now sell from the market,” she said.
Another senior resident, Mrs Debra Milanzi, said informal businesses were now booming.
“Now that people are employed, we can get money through vending and other businesses,” she said.
Most of the elderly residents are pensioners whose monthly income was not enough for them to travel for shopping outside Kamativi.
Mr Fanuel Milanzi said with the little he gets, he can buy locally without having to spend on transport.
“We are grateful that our mine got investors and re-opened. I am a pensioner and with the little I am getting, I can buy locally. We are grateful for the development because our children can now get jobs and stay away from drugs and crime,” he said.
Some residents are even thinking of widening their business scope.
Ms Malitha Mudenda said she used to keep broiler chickens and now wants to expand to indigenous chickens to tap into the market opened by the Chinese investors.
“I am into chicken rearing but business has been low. We have been keeping broiler chickens but business was not moving. The Chinese prefer indigenous chickens and we hope it will boost our business,” she said.
Some of the pensioners said life has been difficult and hope the new environment will improve livelihoods.
Mr Robert Siambebele Mugande said the opening of new shops brings hope.
Mr Micheck Moyo said a booming business also creates more jobs which is a positive development for the economy.
“We used to wait for the food-for-work programme to get food but now we can find means of earning money because there is buying power,” he said.
The residents’ association which has been militant on issues relating to the welfare of Kamativi residents has also welcomed the new developments.
Mr Timothy Mvula, chairman of Kamativi Residents Association said the hope is that none of the residents will be evicted from company houses.
He implored the mine to keep recruiting local people.
“Because of the dark period, our children did not learn any trade hence they lost out on jobs. We have our children who are lying idle with no jobs because they are not trained hence we urge the mine to consider them especially for non-technical posts,” he said.
Kamativi Ward 11 councillor in Hwange Rural District Council Joshua Tshuma said life had generally improved.
“What KMC has done has impacted the community positively. They have constructed roads and tarred some of them. They have employed locals and where there are no locals it is because there will be no technical skills.
“When the mine closed, the only source of income was fishing , people would go there even though it was dangerous because of crocodiles. So now we hope human-wildlife conflict cases will go down as people have sources of income,” he said.
Clr Tshuma said the development should be supported by more investment into water sources and appealed to the Government for help through the Presidential Borehole Drilling Programme.
So far, the investor has drilled and installed solar-powered boreholes at two schools in addition to rehabilitating and tarring a number of roads within Kamativi.
The boreholes are however, overwhelmed by demand for water and people fetch raw water from the crocodile-infested RDC Dam and some disused mine tunnels, putting the community at a health risk.
Online Reporter