Published by the government of Zimbabwe
17 September 2009
Harare — President Mugabe yesterday challenged international investors to seize opportunities in the mining sector and assured them that Government was formulating and implementing appropriate investment policies.
Officially opening a Government-sponsored two-day mining indaba in Harare for foreign and local investors, President Mugabe said Zimbabwe has various minerals waiting to be extracted.
"The case for Zimbabwe as a natural investment destination cannot be overemphasised. Zimbabwe is endowed with a very good climate. It has a diversified mineral base awaiting exploitation and has a skilled and literate workforce and its sound infrastructure -- particularly roads and rail to sea ports -- provide an indispensable service to exporters and importers alike, including those in the mining sector," he said.
President Mugabe, who is Head of State and Government as well as Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, said Zimbabwe respects the sanctity of property rights and the rule of law in all dimensions.
"Given this conducive environment, investors are invited to seize the opportunities offered by the mining sector in the production of an assorted array of important minerals that provide great opportunities for investment," he added.
President Mugabe said the geological formations of the Great Dyke are host to the second largest platinum group of metal resources in the world after South Africa.
He said sedimentary rocks in the western part of Zimbabwe contain billions of tonnes of coal reserves, which are among the largest in Africa and with vast potential for coal-bed methane and gas deposits.
"Government thus remains steadfast in its drive to ensure that the country is an attractive investment destination by formulating and implementing appropriate policies," President Mugabe said.
He noted that the mining sector was capital intensive by nature and required regional and international partners to bring the necessary financing, technology and management expertise to complement local resources.
"On its part, Government is committed to ensuring that the policy environment is stable, predictable and sufficiently attractive to guarantee investors' good returns on their investment," he said.
President Mugabe said the review of the Mines and Minerals Act, to be finalised during the forthcoming parliamentary session in consultation with key stakeholders, would strengthen the relationship between Government and mining firms.
"It also seeks to ensure that Zimbabweans benefit from their natural resources through the creation of an enabling framework.
"Furthermore, the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act was put in place to advance Government's policy of promoting greater participation by indigenous people in economic activities," he said.
President Mugabe said the potential in the mining sector had been constrained by a number of factors that had been worsened by the imposition of illegal economic sanctions.
"Other negative factors include erratic power supplies due to the low capacity utilisation of the power utility, Zesa, to generate sufficient electricity," he said.
The President bemoaned the effects of brain drain, saying it resulted in important services -- such as training and the provision of manpower to critical Government departments -- being eroded thus compromising on service quality.
He said Government was committed to resolving such challenges in the shortest possible time.
"In the case of enablers, Government is committed to ensuring that the mining sector's power requirements are addressed. Government is therefore taking appropriate measures in that regard," President Mugabe said.
He said the mining sector's performance had been adversely affected by the world economic recession, making it imperative for Government and mining houses to pursue specific initiatives that ensured the industry's full potential was realised.
President Mugabe said such initiatives should include the establishment of a Mining Industry Development Programme.
The programme would, in the short term, seek to stabilise mineral production and increase capacity utilisation.
He said initial focus could be on gold, platinum and diamond production, though base metals would not be neglected.
"In addition, close attention and support should be given to those local engineering companies that have traditionally provided operational and maintenance services to the mining industry.
"As part of the roadmap for the mining sector, the programme should lay more emphasis on exploration, empowerment and skills training as well as beneficiation," he added.
President Mugabe said although exploration was risky in nature, it was key to the development of Zimbabwe's unexplored mineral wealth and invited the private sector to complement Government efforts in financing exploratory activities.
He said Government recognised investments made by mining companies in social and infrastructure development programmes.
"The obligations have been focused on the provision of infrastructure in various sectors such as education, health and housing in communities in which the mining activities are located.
"However, I wish to urge mining houses to look beyond and consider the issue of paying royalties to the communities they operate in as a way to further empower those communities," he said.
The President said a strong public-private partnership framework was critical for broad participation in mining.
He said it was vital that financial and technical support was given to small- and medium-scale miners as these had proved their potential in boosting output over the years.
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Sure mugabe will tell them to "sieze" the moment. then when they are up and running profitably HE WILL SIEZE THEM BACK and steal all the money and loot them. Thats his style. Dont be fooled by his bull___t.