The growing threat of silicosis and the need to extend occupational health and safety interventions to Zimbabwe’s highly productive artisanal and small-scale mining sector emerged as key issues at this year’s Mine Ventilation Society of Zimbabwe (MVSZ) Annual Conference and AGM. Discussions highlighted the need to move beyond awareness and focus on practical prevention measures, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Ryan Chigoche
The recently concluded two-day conference in Bulawayo brought together ventilation professionals, mine managers, equipment suppliers and other industry stakeholders.
It came amid growing concern over underground working conditions and silica dust exposure, reinforcing the role of ventilation in protecting mineworkers, particularly in smaller operations.
The urgency was highlighted by figures from Kwekwe General Hospital, which recorded 161 silicosis cases between January and August 2026.
This compares with six cases recorded during the whole of 2021. The figures point to a growing occupational health challenge in mining communities, although they reflect cases recorded at the hospital rather than national statistics.
Silicosis is an irreversible occupational lung disease caused by inhaling respirable crystalline silica dust. The particles penetrate deep into the lungs and progressively damage tissue.
The risk is particularly relevant in gold mining, where drilling, blasting, crushing and processing silica-bearing ore can expose workers to fine dust.
Reflecting on the conference in an interview with Mining Zimbabwe, MVSZ board member and Chief Ventilation Engineer Joshua Tigere said the Society was concerned that some miners could be living with the disease without knowing they had developed it.
“Therefore, as the Ventilation Society, we are very concerned about this development and also worried that some of the miners that are not yet diagnosed with silicosis could actually be suffering from silicosis and could have future deaths,” Tigere said.
To address the problem, he said the Society intended to engage artisanal and small-scale miners through their representative associations in 2027. The initiative would involve education and awareness programmes on silicosis prevention and practical dust-control measures.
“So as the Society, we need to engage them into the coming year, which is 2027, make an arrangement through their association so that we roll out the educational program on that,” he said.
The proposed intervention would help smaller operators introduce basic ventilation arrangements and dust-suppression measures. These include observing re-entry periods after blasting, using water sprays and installing exhaust systems to remove dust at source.
Tigere acknowledged that conventional ventilation infrastructure could be costly for many small-scale miners. However, he said alternative systems could be tailored to their operating conditions.
“This sector suffers serious financial constraints in terms of the capital required for most of these systems, but however, we can tailor-make solutions that suit their capital needs,” he said.
He cited connecting underground shafts to facilitate natural ventilation as one possible alternative.
“For example, instead of mining in a single shaft, they can always link it up to another shaft and utilize natural ventilation,” Tigere said.
Beyond technical interventions, the discussions also highlighted the need for government support and stronger regulatory oversight to extend occupational health protections across the mining industry.
In a separate interview with Mining Zimbabwe, another MVSZ board member, Itai Kahoka, said government intervention was necessary to ensure smaller mining operations met the occupational health standards expected of larger mining companies. He particularly emphasised medical surveillance of employees.
“I think the government can assist us in that. For those small mines, to make sure that they also follow the standards which other big mines are doing. To make sure that they also check, test, examine their employees in terms of the silicosis,” Kahoka said.
He also called for stronger legislative provisions and enforcement mechanisms to ensure mining operations complied with occupational health and safety requirements.
“We need to make sure that our legislation also is covering all those items. So that by the time we identify that these are the issues which are happening, we should make sure that we put on mitigatory measures well in time so that we address the issues before it goes out of hand,” he said.
The concerns raised by the two board members echoed messages delivered during the conference’s opening day.
MVSZ president Dr Tonderai Chikande challenged ventilation practitioners and mine managers to extend their expertise beyond established mining operations and support the highly productive artisanal and small-scale mining sector.
Chikande called for practical ventilation solutions, affordable dust-control technologies and exposure-monitoring programmes to help smaller operators manage occupational risks. Such interventions are particularly important where technical expertise and financial resources are limited.
Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development Dr Fred Moyo also challenged mine managers to prioritise ventilation rather than treat it as a secondary consideration. He reinforced its importance to mine safety, productivity and operational management.
The conference was held under the theme, “Innovation in Mine Ventilation for Sustainable Mining Growth”. It highlighted the importance of applying technology and professional expertise to address the changing demands of the mining industry.
Local suppliers also presented technological solutions to ventilation and underground safety challenges. The technologies showcased included systems and equipment aimed at improving airflow management, monitoring and control of hazardous underground conditions.
For smaller mining operations, access to appropriate and affordable technologies will be particularly important given the financial constraints highlighted by Tigere. The challenge will be to ensure these innovations can be adopted across mines of different sizes and technical capacities.
For MVSZ, the proposed 2027 engagement with small-scale miners, alongside calls for stronger regulatory oversight and greater investment in ventilation, offers a pathway towards translating the discussions into practical interventions that protect workers across the sector.
