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Zimbabwe’s government is targeting the training and licensing of an estimated 600,000 artisanal miners through the Zimbabwe School of Mines (ZSM), as authorities seek to curb rising fatalities in a sector that has become increasingly important to the country’s mining industry, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Ryan Chigoche

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development, Dr Thomas Utete Wushe, unveiled the ambitious target during a familiarisation tour of the school in Bulawayo, arguing that formalising the country’s vast artisanal mining workforce is critical to improving safety standards and reducing preventable deaths.

The push comes against the backdrop of worsening safety statistics. Sixty-four artisanal and small-scale miners died during the first quarter of 2026, a six per cent increase from the same period last year, underscoring the dangers that continue to plague the sector despite its growing contribution to mineral production.

“My challenge to the school and the ministry is to ensure that those 600,000 miners should be qualified and licensed to do what they are doing,” Dr Utete Wushe said.

To illustrate the scale of what he believes can be achieved, Dr Utete Wushe pointed to Zimbabwe’s driver licensing system, which has successfully trained and certified more than three million motorists.

“What we have achieved on the roads shows that the country can do the same for artisanal miners,” he said.

For Dr Utete Wushe, the case for training extends beyond compliance and professionalisation. He argued that equipping miners with the necessary skills and qualifications could significantly reduce the accidents and fatalities that have become synonymous with the sector.

“We need to start moving fast, because the moment we get that done, you obviously reduce that life-losing propensity associated with small-scale artisanal mining. The primary objective is safety. We should not lose a life,” he said, adding that safety should become the defining principle of Zimbabwe’s mining industry.

Dr Utete Wushe then challenged the Zimbabwe School of Mines to strengthen research and innovation aimed at addressing the sector’s safety challenges. He said the institution’s innovation hub should play a leading role in developing practical solutions capable of reducing accidents and improving mining practices.

“My call now is to strengthen your research so that you can create the future. We want this school charting the future through innovation. The moment we start celebrating high productivity, we have a tear to shed because we have lost a life. Can we, as a school, try to start changing that narrative where the story is only about higher production without the cost of life?” he concluded.

Over the years, large-scale mining companies have shown that sustained training, stronger safety systems, and professional standards can dramatically reduce workplace accidents. Government now wants those lessons extended to the artisanal and small-scale mining sector, where fatalities remain stubbornly high.

The push to train and license 600,000 artisanal miners signals a shift towards formalisation as a safety strategy. For the Zimbabwe School of Mines, the task is immense: equipping a vast workforce with the skills to mine responsibly while leading the innovation needed to ensure that rising mineral production no longer comes at the cost of human lives.

Two workers employed by independent contractors died in separate incidents at Sinomine Bikita Minerals, Zimbabwe’s largest lithium mining operation, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Rudairo Mapuranga

The first incident occurred on 6 June 2026 at approximately 19:45 hours, when Mr Thomas Kaliveni (40), a dump truck operator employed by independent contractor WGB Kinsey & Company, sustained fatal injuries at a waste dump site.

The second, unrelated incident followed in the early hours of 7 June 2026, when a security guard employed by Rebnek Security, another independent contractor, was found unresponsive while on duty during a routine supervisory inspection.

In a statement issued on 8 June 2026, Bikita Minerals said investigations into the exact circumstances of the dump truck accident were ongoing and that no further details would be released at this stage out of respect for the families and the investigative process.

The company extended its “heartfelt condolences to the families, friends, and colleagues of the deceased” and reaffirmed that “the safety, health, and well-being of everyone working at our operations remain a core priority.”

Zimbabwe’s Deputy Minister of Mines, Caleb Makwiranzou, has described the completion of the Electronic Cadastre title management system as “the single most important reform for the integrity of our work,” while pledging faster turnaround times and greater fairness in the administration of mining titles, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Ryan Chigoche

Speaking to ministry officials in Harare, Makwiranzou said the long-awaited digital system is critical to restoring transparency and certainty in Zimbabwe’s mining sector, where disputes over overlapping claims have historically undermined investor confidence.

The Electronic Cadastre is a digital mineral rights registry designed to replace Zimbabwe’s paper-based mining title system. Once fully operational, it will enable authorities to map, track, and administer all mining rights, from small-scale gold claims to large petroleum and gas concessions, through a single transparent platform.

Makwiranzou was unequivocal about the significance of the reform.

“It is not just an IT project,” he said. “It is the single most important reform for the integrity of our work. A functioning, transparent, and electronic Cadastre means that the ground is taken. It means that no two people can claim the same place for whatever mineral they want to extract.

“To do the Cadastre means that we now can track our titles. Once we put it on the Cadastre map, that title belongs to the person whom we would have named. Let us commit that the Ministry will have a quick turnaround time and fairness in implementing that Cadastre. When the title is registered, no one can dispute that registration.”

The system is intended to eliminate overlapping claims, reduce disputes, and provide investors with certainty that registered mining rights are secure and legally recognised.

However, implementation has been delayed for years by funding constraints, technical integration challenges, and institutional resistance, leaving the sector reliant on a fragmented paper-based system prone to boundary disputes and double allocations.

Momentum behind the project has recently increased following a key technical breakthrough. The Ministry announced that the E-Cadastre will incorporate survey-grade coordinate data, providing centimetre-level accuracy that allows mining titles to be tied to precise geographic locations.

The Ministry of Mines and Mining Development has set its sights on becoming the best-performing ministry in Government by 2026, with Minister Dr. Polite Kambamura rallying staff to execute and perform better than all other ministries, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Rudairo Mapuranga

Officially opening a team briefing meeting in the capital yesterday, Minister Kambamura declared that every staff member has a role to play if the vision is to become a reality.

“We want the ministry to be the best-performing ministry,” said Minister Kambamura.

He added that dispute resolution will be handled fairly to gain public trust, a critical component in restoring confidence in the mining sector.

The Minister’s rallying call was met with applause from senior officials and provincial representatives in attendance.

Speaking at the same event, Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development Eng. Fred Moyo reinforced the Minister’s vision, emphasising that the ministry is pivotal to the success of the nation’s economy.

“I hope you all know it. Our ministry is pivotal to the success of our nation’s economy,” said Eng. Moyo.

“Being that ministry, it has to execute and perform better than all other ministries. In order to do that, we need to have a vision for our ministry and strategies to achieve it, which is what our ministry is going to share with us.”

The Deputy Minister posed a rhetorical question to the gathering, challenging them to aim for excellence.

“Why can’t we be the best ministry in 2026? Who would support that? Thank you very much. So let’s work to be the best ministry in 2026,” he said.

Eng. Moyo thanked the Minister for his visionary leadership in calling the strategic meeting, describing it as an opportunity to build team togetherness.

“I don’t know whether we’ve been doing this in the past. If this is the first, may it continue. But it can only continue as we build on what we start today, that is building team togetherness and achieving results. I believe that’s what we will do, and we must give our Minister a round of applause while I stand here for this vision,” he said.

The Deputy Minister urged senior officials to cascade the message to colleagues in the provinces.

“I hope we give them the message as delivered by the Minister, with the hope that they will join us in achieving it. Funds permitting, one would hope that the Minister will be able to go around the provinces and do the same,” he added.

“So, as a final shot, can we do what we can to make this ministry the best there is in our Government? Thank you very much.”

The Ministry of Mines and Mining Development remains a key driver of the country’s economic transformation agenda, with the mining sector contributing significantly to export earnings and fiscal revenues.