Chronicle Editor
Sikhulekelani Moyo, [email protected]
INSPIRED by the need to promote peaceful co-existence between mining businesses and communities across the country, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) has partnered with other civic society organisations to broker dialogue among mining stakeholders to reduce conflict.
ZCC and its partner organisations such as the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (Zela), Zimcodd, and other players, are hosting different platforms including the ongoing Alternative Mining Indaba in Bulawayo to provide a dialog platform for resolving common challenges.
In an interview on the side-lines of this year’s four-day Alternative Mining Indaba, ZCC president Bishop Ignatius Makumbe said the welfare of the people who happen to be the church is important, which has seen them coming up with different initiatives to support different communities.
“We always collaborate with any organisation, which has got a like mind, like here, we collaborated with Zela and Zimcodd. They are partners to us in as far as trying to fill in the knowledge gap within the mining industry is concerned,” said Bishop Makumbe.
“You know, there are miners and communities. These need to agree and come together so that we reduce conflict and that’s why we get in and make them come together like what we have done. The mining companies, relevant ministries and communities are here.
“Our approach to any problem is dialogue and our concern is the welfare of the people. So, where we see that there is injustice, we come in with interventions. Even where there are policies and Acts of Parliament that the Government is trying to come up with, we always try to engage and get the community views,” he said.
Bishop Makumbe further explained that mining communities are facing different challenges that include internally displaced people (IDPs).
He also said poor mining practices result in land degradation and contamination of water and the environment, which affects local food production.
“Rivers are disappearing and water is being contaminated, which makes it hard to use it for anything even watering the gardens as it destroys the plants,” said Bishop Makumbe.
ZCC local Ecumenical fellowship (LEF) leader, Rev Patrick Muchebve, said besides being Christians, people are human beings who need resources to survive hence the need for churches to get involved in resource extraction that benefits communities.
“Minerals are God-given resources, which need to benefit the people. So, as a church, we are also overseers, making sure that the available natural resources are benefitting his people,” said Rev Muchebve.
Mrs Rearutwe Ncube who is a member of ZCC and also a miner from Gwanda South said a lot of damage is happening in different mining communities with ZCC advocating for mining companies to give back to the communities they work from.
She said they engage Government departments and relevant officials and reach out to mining companies emphasising the need to craft rules and regulations to protect communities and the mining sector at large.
“We are advocating as the church for the mining companies to plough back to the community. The little that they do, they blow it out of proportion but it’s not enough compared to what they are extracting, they are not considering the social and environmental damages happening there,” said Mrs Ncube.
Government continues to emphasise that communities should benefit from investments that exploit their natural resources. —@SikhulekelaniM1
Online Reporter