ZMF to rescue small-scale miners

Business Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Mining Federation is working with a number of local companies to facilitate procurement of safe and reliable equipment for small-scale miners to boost production as the country aims to reach 48 tonnes of gold by 2018. A concept paper prepared by the organisation and seen by Sunday Business shows that ZMF working with various companies is aiming to make at least 7 500 small scale miners equipped with the basic equipment to mine in the gold sub sector in the next three years.

“We want to triple the gold volumes by 2018 and it’s possible if implementation stages are followed,” said ZMF.
It added that if the miners are mechanised with necessary equipment each has potential to produce seven kilogrammes, mining at least eight tonnes per day at two grammes per tonne.

“The country has a potential of producing over 45 tonnes of gold per annum by 2018 and create 750 000 jobs both skilled and non-skilled from mining only.”

One of the companies that has been identified to work with small-scale miners is Viking Hardware in Bulawayo which assembles a number of mining equipment which is manufactured in China.

“We specifically cater for small-scale miners,” Vikings Hardware managing director Mr Shlomo Lepar told some of the small-scale miners who toured the company on Friday.

“We now have seven years in Zimbabwe and our focus has been to make sure that everything a miner needs we can provide. All our equipment comes with back up and we also do training for the miners on how the equipment is used.”

Mr Lepar said they were also working with a group of 14 disabled miners from Kwekwe where they will do a geological survey and then provide them with equipment at subsidized rates.

“It is our way of ploughing back to the community. We hope those miners that want equipment and do not have money can approach their banks to guarantee the purchase of these equipment and we are ready to assist.”

ZMF has also pioneered gold service centres across the country where some of the equipment can be centrally positioned to help a number of miners.
One of the gold centres is located in Silobela where a record 4,2 kilogrammes was produced in 19 working days last month.

Miners from the centre said if there were properly equipped they can produce 10 kilogrammes of gold within the same time frame.
There are about 40 000 small scale miners registered under the Miners and Minerals Act of Zimbabwe of which more than 30 000 are in the gold sub sector.

Government is trying to help and formalise the sector to ensure that the country can plug cases of gold smuggling which have been rampant in the sector.