Zimbabwe recorded approximately 150 mining fatalities in the nine months to September 30, 2026, up from 132 deaths in the whole of 2025, prompting Deputy Chief Government Mining Engineer Tapererwa Paswavaviri to call for greater access to rock engineering expertise across the country’s artisanal and small-scale mining sector, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
Addressing the 13th Annual General Meeting and Symposium of the Zimbabwe National Institute of Rock Engineering (ZINIRE) in Victoria Falls, Paswavaviri said falls of ground remained a major cause of mining deaths, urging established mining companies, consultants and rock engineering professionals to take practical ground-control expertise directly to small-scale mining operations.
The address, delivered under the theme “Leveraging Technology for Next Generation Fall of Ground Management,” challenged mining companies, consultants and professional engineers to move beyond reactive safety compliance and make rock engineering an integral part of mine planning and operations.
According to figures cited in the address, Zimbabwe recorded 132 mining fatalities across 109 fatal accidents in 2025, down from 186 deaths in 2024 and a peak of 237 in 2023.
However, the improvement has since been reversed, with approximately 150 fatalities recorded from about 140 mining accidents by September 30, 2026.
The official also highlighted the risks facing small-scale miners, where 64 deaths were recorded in the first quarter of 2026, representing a 6% increase in fatalities in the sector. Ground collapses accounted for 54% of those deaths, while improper blasting and gassing contributed a further 25%.
Falls of ground accounted for 44 of the 109 fatal accidents recorded in 2025, while shaft-related collapses and accidents claimed another 22 lives, according to the figures presented.
The Deputy Chief Government Mining Engineer said many mining deaths were preventable, pointing to unsafe practices, including unsupported hanging walls, inadequate timber or roof-bolt support, shallow workings developed without rock mechanics input, and shafts sunk without secondary escape outlets.
For Zimbabwe’s mining industry, the figures underscore the importance of ground control not only as a worker-safety requirement but also as a factor in maintaining reliable production. Ground failures can expose workers to danger, damage underground workings and disrupt operations.
Technology must move beyond compliance
The Deputy Chief Government Mining Engineer urged mining companies to incorporate rock engineering into mine design, capital budgeting and operational planning rather than treating it primarily as a response to accidents.
The official identified predictive mine design, cross-disciplinary monitoring, appropriate ground-support systems, mechanisation and reliable supplies of support materials as important components of effective fall-of-ground management.
Three-dimensional computer modelling, for example, can help engineers assess proposed mine layouts and anticipate potential ground behaviour before mining begins. Meanwhile, remote scaling and mechanised bolting can reduce workers’ exposure to unsupported ground.
The address also called for closer cooperation between rock engineers, surveyors, geologists and mine managers in identifying and managing ground-related hazards.
“A safer mine is inherently a more productive and profitable mine,” the official said, urging mine managers to integrate geotechnical engineering into early-stage planning to reduce rehabilitation delays, ore dilution and stope failures.
The official further said the Government had launched a 24-hour mining accident response call centre and directed the Mining Inspectorate to exercise its statutory powers against operators that treated safety as a paperwork exercise.
Small-scale miners need access to rock engineering expertise
The strongest challenge from the address was directed at the country’s artisanal and small-scale mining sector, which the official said supports more than half a million livelihoods directly and produces approximately three-quarters of Zimbabwe’s gold.
Despite its contribution to gold production and employment, the sector faces difficulties accessing professional rock engineering services, with many operators unable to afford full-time specialists.
The Deputy Chief Government Mining Engineer called on ZINIRE, established mining companies and private geotechnical consultants to take practical ground-control knowledge directly to small-scale mining operations.
“We must take rock engineering out of the boardroom and down to the small-scale shafts,” the official said.
The proposed outreach effort would focus on three areas: making ground-control principles easier for miners to understand, establishing mentorship programmes and regional training clinics, and developing local rock engineering skills.
Under the proposed “Adopt-a-Syndicate” approach, rock engineering departments at established mines and private consultancies would work with the Ministry’s regional offices and the Zimbabwe School of Mines to provide practical training to surrounding small-scale mining communities.
The training would cover basic ground assessment, safe shaft-sinking practices, timber support, pillar sizing and the identification of warning signs such as tension cracks and loose hanging walls.
The official also pointed to the Zimbabwe Small-Scale Mining Safety Council as evidence of efforts within the sector to organise around safety and improve miners’ access to practical knowledge.
ZINIRE was commended for supporting student participation through free registration, sponsoring awards for outstanding rock engineering students at the Zimbabwe School of Mines, and conducting Strata Control Examinations to strengthen technical capacity.
The address called for these professional development initiatives to be matched by greater outreach to operations that lack the resources and technical expertise available to larger mining companies.
Ground control remains a production priority
For Zimbabwe’s mining industry, extending rock engineering services to smaller operators presents a challenge beyond professional training. It requires practical ways of making technical expertise, suitable support materials and ground-control knowledge accessible to miners working with limited resources.
The proposed outreach approach would bring established mining companies, professional engineers, government offices and training institutions into closer cooperation with small-scale miners, where ground instability continues to pose a significant safety risk.
The Deputy Chief Government Mining Engineer urged delegates to use the ZINIRE symposium to strengthen ground-control practices across both large-scale and small-scale operations, arguing that improvements in technology must translate into safer working conditions at mine level.
The 13th ZINIRE Annual General Meeting and Symposium was officially opened following the address.
