MBABANE – Government plans to retain locally mined gold as part of the country’s national reserves.
Minister for Natural Resources and Energy Prince Lonkhokhela said Government had secured a mining partner to begin formal gold extraction. He said the partnership was secured by His Majesty King Mswati III during a State visit and followed consultations with relevant stakeholders.
The minister said the initiative was meant to curb illegal mining and ensure the mineral wealth benefited emaSwati.
He said gold mined under the project would be bought by government and held by the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE), instead of being sold abroad.
The minister was responding to questions on government’s plans to stop illegal mining by zama zamas, who have been extracting gold from abandoned and inactive mines.
He rejected proposals to legalise the illegal miners as artisanal miners, saying that would expose them to continued exploitation and dangerous working conditions.
An economist had previously suggested government could regulate the miners and tax them, citing Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Liberia. “They are exploited because they sell the gold at very low prices,” Prince Lonkhokhela said.
He said buyers took advantage of the miners because they knew the gold had been obtained illegally.
The minister said illegal miners risked their lives by entering unstable mine shafts without proper equipment or safety measures.
He also said unregulated mining was damaging the environment, including land, rivers and streams.
“The way this mining is conducted is damaging the environment. Not only is the land being destroyed, but rivers are also being contaminated,” he said.
Illegal gold mining has persisted despite regular patrols and arrests by the police and the army.
The continued extraction of gold outside the legal framework has resulted in the country losing a valuable national resource.
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Seal abandoned mine entrances to stop zama zamas
MBABANE – Some residents near abandoned mines want government to seal open shafts to curb illegal mining.
They said reinforced concrete could make it harder for illegal miners, commonly known as zama zamas, to access underground workings.
Residents around Pigg’s Peak claimed some illegal miners resorted to theft when police raids disrupted their income.
Their call follows concern over a recurring cycle in which suspected illegal miners are arrested, only for new groups to return to abandoned mine sites weeks later.
Some illegal miners told Eswatini News they wanted to work legally because underground conditions were dangerous.
In recent months, the police and the army have intensified operations targeting illegal mining, resulting in arrests and seizures of equipment and minerals.
Despite these efforts, residents believe enforcement alone will not end the problem unless abandoned shafts are secured.
“We appreciate the efforts made by the police and the army, but arrests alone are not solving the problem,” said one resident, who requested anonymity for safety reasons.
He said if abandoned mines were properly sealed with concrete, people would not be able to go underground easily.
He said reopening sealed shafts would be costly and any attempt to do so could attract the attention of law enforcement officers.
Concerned community members said the presence of illegal miners had been linked to theft, trespassing, intimidation and damage to property in some areas.
They believe permanently closing abandoned mine entrances would improve public safety and reduce environmental risks.
*Full article available on Pressreader*
