Zimbabwe: Small-Scale Miners Demand Simpler Formalisation, Raise Red Flags Over New Mines Bill

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Small-scale miners have voiced serious concerns over the proposed Mines and Minerals Bill urging lawmakers to streamline formalisation processes, cut financial burdens and extend the validity of key mining licenses.

The sentiments emerged during a Mines and Minerals Bill Expert Group/Stakeholders Meeting organised to unpack and analyze the newly gazetted bill’s implications on the artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sector.

“So, our analysis of the Mines and Minerals Bill is focused on the project components. The first one being formalisation. From this conference that we are having with the small-scale miners facilitated by the Zimbabwe Miners Federation, it is clear that the small-scale miners have a sense that the Bill should further simplify the formalisation processes for the small-scale miners,” said Nyaradzo Mutonhori, PlanetGold Zimbabwe project manager.

While applauding the Bill for finally defining who qualifies as a small-scale miner, stakeholders pushed for improvements.

“They applaud the bill for recognising small scale miners through defining for the first time in the mining laws of this country what a small-scale miner or who a small-scale miner is. But they feel more can be done in terms of improving that definition and also really streamlining the formalisation process for small scale miners such that it’s easier for them,” she said

Concerns also surround a growing list of financial obligations.

“Their primary concern as small scale miners is that there is also a huge financial burden that has been introduced or is being introduced through this bill. So, there are so many levies that they now have to pay and there are so many institutions and new agents that have been introduced, for example, the staking agents. This means they will need to pay more to formalise and to stay, you know, in compliance,” said Mutonhori