Technical, material constraints hamper mining growth

Dosman Mangisi
AS the government moves to boost small-scale mining in the country, there are three key areas that need to be taken into consideration to ensure sustainable growth of the sector.

As a country we need to fine-tune the legal framework affecting mining operations. These cover the Mines and Minerals Act and all the related Statutory Instruments.

Attention is also needed in terms of technical support, which is the process of equipping miners with the necessary tools and equipment.

Material support cannot be overlooked as matters of occupational health and safety, among others, matter a lot.

The legal framework governing mining in this country has been cited as a major challenge, in fact a threat to artisanal and small-scale miners who struggle to meet compliance requirements.

In this regard, a large gap exists and miners continue to suffer in a sector that is capital-intensive.

Many people who are into the gold and chrome subsectors have become miners due to economic challenges as these minerals are believed to generate cash faster.

However, to peg a claim of gold, one should fork out up to $1,445, a figure, which small-scale miners feel is too high before they can start operations.

This amount of money excludes Environmental Management Agency (EMA) fees and other charges by local authorities, which can gobble up to $5,000.

Technical aspects play a big role in mining, be it gold, chrome or tantalite. Our mining has generally remained traditional in approach despite the technological innovations.

Small-scale miners are bound to mine not more than 50 metres deep, but this is not what is taking place on the ground. Some are mining at over 130 metres using traditional methods, posing high occupational risks.

Close to 200 artisanal miners will be in the shaft trying to take ore out. If it’s gold they take about seven days to mine three tonnes. In chrome, one needs a day to mine a tonne of ore.

Today there is plenty of equipment, thanks to advancing technology, that can be used to improve operations of small-scale and artisanal miners. Winches are key tools for taking out ore in a shaft in mining gold. Hammer mills and roller mills are designed to crush ore, but our artisanal miners still use pestles and mortars. It takes the whole day for one to crush a tonne of ore using these tools but with a roller or hammer mill one needs an hour or 30 minutes.

Small-scale producers cannot approach millers because they do not have documents needed for one to be a miner as required by the law of the day.

They still lack material support in the area of occupational, health and safety practices.

Many artisanal miners are exposed to dangerous metallic chemicals such as cyanide, mercury and sulphuric acid, risking diseases such as TB and cancer.

The Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Fred Moyo, recently said the government has taken a step in formalising the small scale-miners and recognising them in the new mines and minerals draft law. He said it was President Mugabe’s goal to see small-scale miners “capacitated and supported legally, technically and materially”.

The sector has been ignored despite being a big constituency of indigenous miners with massive potential.

“A lot of gold is leaking in that sector. We hope other line stakeholders will adjust to suit the needs of the small-scale miners,” Deputy Minister Moyo added.

Pact country director, Trevor Maisiri, who heads a non-governmental organisation that spearheads and supports the formalisation of small-scale and artisanal miners, said specific areas need to be addressed.

“A specific area which needs to be touched is developing of skills of artisanal and small-scale miners and millers to increase the efficiency of resource extraction and recovery.

“There’s a need to mitigate conflicts in the sector in order to assist government in ensuring that the gold recovered is traded legally.

“There’s need to develop knowledge of metal chemicals, which are mercury, cyanide and sulphuric acid and others and try to help on health provision and support of miners and also enhancing environmental protection,” he said.

Zimbabwe is the third country in Africa to recognise small-scale miners after Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Many African states still find it difficult to implement such a policy, while the world of technology has already adjusted to tailor-make mining equipment that suits artisanal and small-scale miners.