Unki First to Achieve IRMA 75 Rating, Completes Surveillance Audit
Anglo-American Platinum (Amplats) – owned Unki Mine, the country’s third-largest platinum group metals (PGM) producer, has set a global benchmark by becoming the first mine to achieve the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) 75 Rating and complete the IRMA Surveillance Audit, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
According to Amplats’ Climate Change Report for 2023, Unki Mine was the first mine in the world to publicly commit to being independently audited against the IRMA Standard. It was also the first mine in Africa to complete the review, achieving the IRMA 75 Rating in the process.
The report further states that in 2022, Unki became the first mine in the world to undergo an IRMA Surveillance Audit.
“Our Unki PGMs mine in Zimbabwe was the first mine in the world to publicly commit to being independently audited against the IRMA Standard and the first mine in Africa to complete the review, which was verified by a third-party assessor. Unki has achieved the IRMA 75 Rating. In 2022, Unki also became the first mine in the world to undergo an IRMA Surveillance Audit,” the report reads in part.
The Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) responds to the global demand for more socially and environmentally responsible mining.
IRMA offers truly independent assessments against a comprehensive standard for all mined materials, providing ‘one-stop coverage’ of the full range of issues related to the impacts of industrial-scale mines.
The organization envisions a world where the mining industry respects the human rights and aspirations of affected communities, provides safe, healthy, and supportive workplaces, minimizes harm to the environment, and leaves positive legacies.
IRMA’s mission is to protect people and the environment directly affected by mining. They achieve this by creating financial value for mines that are independently verified to achieve best practices and by sharing this value with the businesses that purchase material from these mines.