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Illegal miners turn to robberies, increasing criminal activities in mining towns

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Illegal miners turn to robberies, increasing criminal activities in mining towns

A number of criminal activities have been linked to illegal miners who are looking for alternative ways to earn a living.

Vongai Mbara

Addressing miners from Zimbabwe Miners Federation Mashwest Province in Kadoma yesterday, Officer Commanding District Chief Superintended Kezia Karuru said the number of criminal activities in mining towns is alarmingly rising as a result of illegal miners engaging in robberies.

“Illegal miners are coming from all parts of the country in search of mineral resources. However, when they come into mining towns, they don’t always find what they are looking for and instead, start engaging in criminal activities such as robberies to source for food,” he said.

Karuru encouraged the miners to be ethical and help the government in reducing the crime of illegal mining.

“The national statement is, No to illegal mining so my plea is that miners should assist to uphold the national status. Mining and Agriculture are the backbones of our country, therefore they should be done ethically. There are laws governing mining and they should not be broken.

“People without knowledge and identity linked to mining are engaging in mining activities and it is not acceptable. Let us all work together and end illegal mining,” he added.

Many reports have been made against illegal miners who are engaging in different criminal activities.

In Esigodini, there are cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and child pregnancies by illegal miners.

Zimbabwe Miners Federation chairperson, Mr Timothy Chizuzu said their organization is working closely with Small Scale Miners to equip them with the knowledge and ethics required in running mining projects.

Domboshava residents face displacement in new gold rush

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Domboshava residents face displacement in new gold rush

Domboshava residents on the outskirts of Harare are facing imminent displacement to accommodate a clique of gold miners.

Vongai Mbara

The fresh gold rush is allegedly happening without following due process, including an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and other licencing processes.

The community is crying foul for not being engaged and the matter has since escalated to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s office as the desperate villagers scrounge for help.

The gold rush is led by an association of small-scale miners under the Gold Miners Federation (GMF) banner.

Its claims span over five villages — Mazanhi, Muunganirwa, Ruzvidzo, N’andu and Chakavarika which are home to religious shrines of national heritage.

Reportedly, there is name-dropping of senior officials said to be backing the evictions and the villagers are now living in fear of imminent displacement.

Information gathered by the Zimbabwe Independent shows that the area pegged includes Gasura Mountain, popularly known as Gomo raGabriel, a shrine for an apostolic sect.

Traditional leaders are concerned that the displacements will affect the spiritual and ancestral links of many villagers.

The villagers claim they fear that if the mountains are tempered with, there could be a repeat of the Chimaninimani catastrophe where homes and infrastructure and lives were lost due to Cyclone Idai in 2019.

This follows reports of villagers in Mutoko and Murehwa who are facing eviction from their ancestral lands to pave way for Chinese miners.

Lately, there has been an increase of cases where indigenous owners of the land are threatened with displacement to make way for mostly Chinese investors.

As previously reported by this publication, swathes of mineral fields have been controversially parcelled out at an alarming pace, in what could be a scandalous mortgaging of natural resources to Chinese nationals, sidelining local residents.

Recently, it came to light that 1 500 Mutoko villagers are likely to be moved to make way for a black granite mine owned by Chinese investors.

In Mavuradonha, foreign miners invaded game parks to exploit chrome. A Chinese miner also got a claim in Hwange National Park for coal.

A top artisanal gold miner, who has information about the Domboshava area, said, “This area was pegged a long time ago and the real issue is that villagers should learn to wake up and take the initiative instead of watching others taking over their resources.”

Gvt criticised for Chinese land “invasion” and destruction

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Gvt criticised for Chinese land “invasion” and destruction

The Zimbabwean government has been criticised for allowing Chinese companies to “invade and destroy” rural communities for mining with disregard to existing laws and community livelihood.

Shantel Chisango

This followed after a video of a Chinese mining company went viral on social media for surface blasting near Mutoko rural homesteads. Livestock is seen running for cover and debris destroying some of the homes below the blast site which is at the top of a mountain.

The Chinese company at the site made headlines after the company pegged a whole village of 70 homesteads and told people to seek alternative land to occupy. No community consultation was ever done which is a breach of the communal lands act chapter [20:04]. A recent visit by the Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development had Hon Polite Kambamura saying govt has taken note of the grievances.

It is not clear what the government intends to do next.

In the background of the video, a voice of a young boy is heard shouting that the kitchen of his grandmother had been destroyed by the blast.

“Kitchen yaGogo yapwanyiwa (my grandmother’s kitchen has been destroyed),” says the young boy speaking in the background in Mutoko.

Commenting on the blast, journalist Hopewell Chin’ono stated that the government is to blame for allowing the Chinese to practice mining while destroying communities.

“This is what gvt has allowed the Chinese to do in Zimbabwe, to cause environmental degradation whilst driving out black locals from their ancestral land,” said Hopewell.

Adding on, the Centre for Research and Development Zimbabwe (CRDZIM) commented that the government is reluctantly not doing anything about amending the mines and minerals bills since 2018.

“President Mnangagwa’s government has been sitting on the mines and minerals bill since 2018. The reasons are becoming clearer for everyone to see. Sad,” commented CRDZimbabwe.

Mining Girl Child Indaba rescheduled

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Mining Girl Child Indaba rescheduled

The much-awaited Mining Girl Child Indaba (MGCI) which was expected to take place next month has been moved to December, Mining Girl Child Indabala Chief Executive Officer Ms Nomsa Mpofu has said.

Rudairo Mapuranga

The launch of the Mining Girl Child Indaba (MGCI) is expected to bring an end to the heart-wrenching situation faced by the girl child in the mining community

According to Mpofu, the Indaba has been rescheduled due to the constraints induced by the covid-19 pandemic as the event partners were affected by the lockdowns.

“I would like to announce that our indaba Dates are moved from the 15th of October to the 3rd of December due to Sponsorship. Please be advised that it has been a rough page for our partners due to the pandemic and agreed to give them time to prepare for our sponsorship requests. Above all would like to kindly ask you to bear with us and keep on supporting us, we can never be successful without your backup,” Mpofu said.

Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) has been prevalent in Zimbabwe within the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) and the large-scale mining (LSM) sectors with verbal and sexual harassment, sexual violence, physical violence, and socio-economic violence affecting the girl child the most.

There is no one uniform manifestation of SGBV in the mining sector and the forms can range from verbal abuse to extreme acts of sexual violence. For women as LSM employees, sexual harassment is the most common form of SGBV. Women as ASM workers experience egregious acts of sexual violence.

Mining companies according to Ms Mpofu have a responsibility to make mining communities a safe place for women, the reason Miss Mines Zimbabwe created the indaba to bring an end to sexual and gender-based violence within the mining sector.

“It’s the indaba’s objective to gather every relevant Stakeholder to take part in maintaining communities making them worth living for the Girlchild. The launch of the indaba is there to bring an end to these horrible situations. Note…not to reduce but to bring an end by all costs.”

“Everything happening goes back to the responsibility of operating mining companies.  It’s their duty to maintain a safe environment for their businesses in collaboration with the Government.” She said.

According to Mpofu, women as community members need recourse to safe and functioning justice and referral mechanisms should they encounter SGBV, as well as accessible, well-designed company grievance mechanisms and gender desks that consider preventative concerns, as well as complaints after SGBV has occurred.

She said that mining sector stakeholders need to do more to tackle SGBV, this should be through collaboration with existing SGBV actors, drawing on existing professional standards, and guidance on SGBV prevention and response.

Mpofu said Mining Companies should promote giving back to the community’s initiatives through

  • Supporting sustainable projects
  • Provide scholarships
  • Start stretching their Mining businesses to a Tourism related business i.e build hotels, jewellery museums, introduce travel and tours, etc so as to create employment for the girls also this attracts more investors and tourists.
  • Promote building of schools and colleges
  • Support awareness for the benefit of the GirlChild

Displacement of villagers a human rights violation

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Displacement of villagers a human rights violation

The displacement of villagers from their ancestral land to pave way for corporate activities is increasingly becoming one of the major human rights violations in the country, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) has said.

Vongai Mbara

In a statement to commemorate International Day of Peace held yesterday, ZimRights called out the government for displacing communities and “parcelling out the land to businesses run by friends and families of the ruling elite”.

“ZimRights, therefore, calls on the government of Zimbabwe to participate in the peace-building journey by respecting the rights of the people of Zimbabwe as enshrined in the Bill of Rights,” ZimRights said.

“During the course of the year, we have documented serious violations of human rights that are an affront to our Constitutional obligation to work for the peace and justice of all. (These include) the displacement of communities from their ancestral and agricultural lands to pave way for big businesses that are owned by friends and families of the ruling elite.”

Thousands of villagers throughout the country are facing eviction, while others have already been displaced to pave way for Chinese mining companies.

The International Day of Peace was held under the theme ‘Recovering Better for an Equitable and Sustainable World.’

Chinese to siphon tourist attraction’s water for mining purposes

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Chinese to siphon tourist attraction’s water for mining purposes

Mutorashanga citizens have expressed great concern that Green-pool, a tourist attraction site, is about to be siphoned off its water by a Chinese company for mining purposes.

Shantel Chisango

The local residents have therefore called on the government to intervene and protect the tourist attraction site which serves the purpose of developing the tourism sector, a pillar of National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).

“As residents, we would appreciate it if the government protects this vital attraction and helps us develop it in the interests of developing tourism which is a pillar of  National Development Strategy 1,” said the petition.

Furthermore, the petition stated Green-pool is also among international tourist attraction sites just like Chinhoyi Caves hence the urge for the Chinese company not to siphon the water.

They went on to urge the Chinese company to drill its own borehole for the water they need for mining purposes.

Adding on, the petition stated that Mutorashanga citizens are not against any mining activities on the site, but are disagreeing with the idea of draining water from the pool.

“Whilst we would have no objection to any mining activities on the site, we would fail to comprehend why foreign mining interests seek to draw water from the pool instead of drilling boreholes for their water requirements.”

Mutorashanga is waiting on the government to hear their petition.

Extractive sector important towards the development of Zim

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Extractive sector important towards the development of Zim

Regional Governance, Research and Policy Officer at Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW) Veronica Zano has stressed the importance of managing the extractive sector saying they contribute heavily to the economic development of the country.

Shantel Chisango

Speaking at the Zimbabwe Multi-Stakeholder Debt Conference held at the Rainbow Towers today, she added that if governed properly, they can play a vital role in the eradication of poverty, especially in developing countries.

“Minerals have immense potential to drive growth, support, sustainable development, and reduce poverty in developing countries,” she said.

Zano went on to say that it is high time that the country realizes how it can take advantage of the mineral resources it is endowed with to help in the development of the economy, as well as for settling public debts.

“There is, therefore, a need to identify how Zimbabwe’s extractive sector can be an engine for sustainable development and more importantly the addressing the country’s huge public debt deficit,” added Zano.

It is however important to note that the mining sector alone cannot strengthen and properly be the only catalyst in developing the country, but there must be efforts by the government to push other sectors in strengthening the economy.

“Mining on itself can never catapult the nation to the developments that it wants, on its own, but there should be efforts by the government to ensure that resources underpin development from other economies,” said Veronica.

During the meeting, she mentioned that the mining sector is a volatile place where prices can sky-rocket, and at the same time can fall abruptly, hence the country’s sheer value of extractive industry being infested with many challenges.

“Zimbabwe’s sheer value of the extractive industry has been riddled with a lot of challenges which include not always being able to collect appropriate levels of revenues, and illicit financial flows.”

Muzarabani oil company nominated Africa’s oil and energy awards

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Muzarabani oil company nominated Africa’s oil and energy awards

Australian Stock Exchange-listed oil and gas exploration firm with operations in Muzabani, Mashonaland Central, Invictus Energy Ltd has been nominated for Best Independent player in Africa for the Big 5 Board Awards at the Africa E&P Summit and Exhibition.

Rudairo Mapuranga

The Big Five Board Awards are the longest-standing awards for Africa’s oil and gas industry. Awarded since 1996 and with over 150 recipients to date, the Big Five Board Awards enter an incredible 25th year. The winners will be revealed at the Big Five Board Awards ceremony as the finale of the Africa E&P Summit. The awards ceremony celebrates the best individuals and companies active in Africa’s oil & gas sector. There are five award categories within the Big Five Board Awards and a special category for Africa’s Oil Legend.

Award Categories

  • Distinguished Individual Contribution to the African Industry
  • Corporate Contribution to African Petroleum & Excellence
  • Africa’s Independent Player of the Year
  • Service & Supply Company of the Year
  • African National Oil Company of the Year
  • Africa’s Oil Legend Award

The Africa E&P Summit brings together Africa’s upstream industry for a unique event shaped for companies active in Africa’s oil and energy game and provides unrivalled insight into the Continent’s fast-changing exploration and energy horizon. The Africa E&P Summit will be a hybrid event, encompassing an in-person conference in London in which an online audience also participates.

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