Parly key in the negotiation of better mining deals
There is a need for parliamentary oversight in the negotiation and monitoring of the country’s mining deals to enhance transparency and avoid deals that do not benefit the country.
Prince Sunduzani
The country is in a race to grow its mining industry and is pushing for huge investment in the mining sector.
They noted that there was a growing demand for Zimbabwe’s resources especially the new-age minerals like lithium, hence the need for better negotiation of deals that will ensure a win-win setup.
Parliamentarians and experts have said that legislators have to play an oversight role where they can scrutinize investments before and after they are finalised to ensure that the country does not get short-changed.
They warned that some investors look genuine on paper but they harbour ill intentions which, include tax evasion, and making deals that benefit the investor at the expense of the country.
Speaking at the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Mining Development training workshop, Transparency International Zimbabwe Programmes officer Mr Tafadzwa Chikumbu said parliamentarians have a role to play in mineral contracts and transparency.
He said transparency will ensure that legislators can best protect the public interest.
“The publication of natural resource contracts is an important tool to ensure compliance with legal obligations. The knowledge that contracts will ultimately be published provides an incentive to contract negotiators to improve contract quality. If contracts are subject to public scrutiny, government officials will more likely think twice before signing a bad deal,” he said.
“In recent years, many MPs have become active promoters of contract transparency. The law requires that contracts be made public, MPs together with civil society organizations can better monitor compliance with legal obligations and ensure that contract terms have not undermined legislative work (e.g., contract terms that contravene national legislation). One of the fundamental roles of parliament is the oversight of activities conducted by government and companies.”
He said MPs as representatives of the country’s citizens need to be informed and involved, as Contract secrecy weakens the government’s negotiating position.
Speaking in an interview on the sidelines of the event, Portfolio Committee on Mines and Mining Development chairperson Hon Edmond Mkaratigwa said there is a need for capacitation of officials responsible for contract negotiations.
He said there is a need to attend to gaps in the legislation adding that they are advocating for contract transparency for that to be possible.
“It might be easy to attend to issues of accountability but where there’s no transparency there can be a challenge. Transparency can also affect certain deals and certain investors may lead to reversal or lack of fruition of some investments. I’m hoping and praying for a win-win situation whereby we attend to gaps in legislation and are advocating for contracts that are transparent,” said Mkaratigwa.