Mining indaba to be hosted

The City of Mbombela Municipality, in conjunction with other stakeholders, will host its first mining indaba in November. The need for such a meeting was raised in October last year when the Barberton Mines Transformation Trust (BMTT) held its first annual general meeting.

A mining indaba task team, comprising two community members, Vuyisile Fakude and Meiston Mnisi, was established.

“Since its establishment, various stakeholders had been approached to be part of and support the event. However, there was a need to involve other mining companies that operate in the area,” said BMTT chairman, Essie Esterhuizen.

The purpose of the indaba will be to ensure legislative compliance with specific reference to the Mineral Petroleum and Development Act, the social and labour plan, corporate and social investments and the Mining Charter, with specific reference to local economic development and broad-based black economic empowerment (BBBEE).

It will facilitate the establishment of a mining-sector and community forum to aid job creation and to obtain commitment of all stakeholders to contribute and participate in the process of job creation, economic development, promotion and support of small-business entrepreneurs.

The two-day indaba, which takes place on November 2 and 3, aims to achieve consensus by local mines to commit to the establishment of internal transformation structures to maximise benefits to designated communities.

It aims to accelerate agreement in conducting robust and radical painstaking analysis both in supply-chain procurement processes, to identify specific constraints and bottlenecks that impair participation of small local business entrepreneurs.

“Furthermore, the meeing will ensure the facilitation of a value-chain analysis and put up sets of sequenced tools to identify strategic goods and services for small-business entrepreneurs in order to address constraints and hold-ups in the short, medium and long term.

It will also identify and facilitate the establishment of and regularisation of small-scale mining and provide or advance access and space for mining. We are looking forward to the indaba as we anticipate that it will yield good and positive results for mining sectors and the community,” concluded Esterhuizen.

Spokesman for City of Mbombela, Sam Jele, said the municipality had been engaging with all stakeholders including mines and community representatives to ensure the indaba would be a success.

“These mines contribute largely to the economy. It is our responsibility to create a platform where the community can benefit. It paves a way forward for investment in these fields,”said Jele.

Stakeholders that will also play a part include the Department of Mineral and Energy Affairs and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism.