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Mining Indaba remains Africa’s premier platform for dialogue, dealmaking, and policy alignment in the global mining sector.
Kelvin Sungiso
For Zimbabwe, a country endowed with significant mineral resources and increasing relevance in the global critical minerals supply chain, the investment forum presents a pivotal opportunity. Beyond promotion, it offers a platform to reposition Zimbabwe as a stable, forward-looking, and investment-friendly mining destination anchored in sustainability and value addition.
Zimbabwe hosts substantial reserves of lithium, platinum group metals, gold, chrome, nickel, and other strategic minerals critical to global industrialisation and the energy transition. As demand accelerates for battery minerals and low-carbon technologies, investors are seeking jurisdictions that offer regulatory clarity, transparent governance, and responsible mining practices.
The investment indaba provides Zimbabwe with a global stage to articulate its mining vision, address legacy concerns, and demonstrate tangible progress in policy reform. Effective participation requires deliberate engagement in conversations that directly respond to investor expectations while aligning with national development objectives.
Zimbabwe’s delegation, led by the new Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Engineer Polite Kambamura, Fidelity Gold Refiners (FGR), the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe, the Chamber of Mines, and policymakers, must engage directly with international investors, legal experts, and investment promotion agencies to communicate progress on legislative reforms, licensing processes, and fiscal stability.
Key concerns to address include transparency in mineral rights allocation, consistency in taxation frameworks, and clear timelines for approvals. A credible narrative on reforms and dispute resolution mechanisms is essential to rebuilding investor confidence and reducing perceived country risk.
Zimbabwe’s lithium and rare earth endowment places it at the centre of the global energy transition. The investment conference offers an opportunity to shift conversations from raw mineral exports towards structured partnerships with battery manufacturers, electric vehicle (EV) supply chains, downstream processors and more.
Engagements should focus on offtake agreements, joint ventures, and investment incentives that promote local beneficiation and industrial development. By positioning itself as a reliable long-term supplier with value addition ambitions, Zimbabwe can secure sustainable investment while maximising economic returns.
The future of mining is technology-driven. Zimbabwe’s participation should include mining executives from key mining houses such as Zimbabwe Platinum Mines, Mimosa, Kuvimba Mining House, Namib, Caledonia Mining, and Dallaglio, among others; innovation stakeholders such as the Zimbabwe School of Mines, the Chamber of Mines, the Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF), the University of Zimbabwe, and the National University of Science and Technology, among others; and technical experts engaging with technology providers and geoscience firms.
Discussions should explore digitalisation, automation, geospatial technologies, and skills development to improve productivity, safety, and competitiveness. Demonstrating openness to innovation signals readiness for modern, efficient, and sustainable mining operations.
A successful engagement requires a coordinated, multidisciplinary delegation comprising government leadership (Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Mines, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Tourism), senior mining executives, regulatory and legal experts, ESG advisers, and investment promotion agencies such as ZIDA. Inclusion of finance and trade representatives further strengthens Zimbabwe’s ability to convert dialogue into bankable projects.
If approached strategically, the Indaba can yield concrete outcomes, new investment leads, strategic alliances in critical minerals, improved international perception, and stronger regional collaboration. Importantly, it offers Zimbabwe a chance to reposition its mining sector narrative from one defined by uncertainty to one anchored in reform, sustainability, and shared prosperity.
Mining Indaba 2026 is not merely a networking event for Zimbabwe; it is a strategic inflection point. Success will depend on the quality of conversations led, the credibility of commitments made, and the ability to translate engagement into long-term partnerships. By focusing on regulatory certainty, critical minerals strategy, sustainability, and innovation, Zimbabwe can lay the foundation for a resilient and globally competitive mining sector.
