Namtumbo — THE government has said that it is impressed by the measurers taken so far by the developers of Mkuju River uranium project in Namtumbo District in addressing social and environmental impact in the area.

The Ruvuma Regional Commissioner, Ms Christine Ishengoma, said here over the weekend that that the project needs support of all stakeholders.

"This is a good project which we should be proud of because there are enormous social and economic benefits attached to it", she said.

Ms Ishengoma said that the company will offer employment to hundreds of youth in the area and also support other economic and social activities.

"We have been told by the management of the company that they will source most of the supplies like food locally. This is encouraging because many people here will be able to make good business with the company", she said.

She challenged residents in the region to use the opportunities to start up businesses that could generate money.

"But I caution them not to think that whatever they produce will be purchased by the company. They have to think about quality and keep promise on delivery", she said.

She also hailed the warm relationship between the project developers-Mantra Tanzania Limited and the communities living near the mine, saying it has set a good precedent to other companies planning to invest in the area.

The RC appealed to the central government to give the company all the necessary support to make the project a dream come true.

"I led a strong team of over 30 members of the regional security team to the mine about a week ago and we were all impressed about the progress made so far", she said.

She also allayed fears of environmental degradation as a result of the mine, saying all measures have been taken by the company in collaboration with all other stakeholders. On his part, the company's Managing Director, Mr Tony Devlin said that the project whose feasibility study was completed in March this year, is progressing well.

He said that on completion, the mine will produce over 1,650 tonnes of uranium oxide a year and will overtake the United States to become the eight largest producer in the world. Currently, the US produces 1,560 tonnes a year.

"The project is shaping up as a truly world-class investment and has the potential, in its first phase of its development, to position the United Republic of Tanzania as the third largest producer of Uranium in Africa", he said.

Mr Devlin added that at this level of production, Tanzania will produce three times more uranium oxide than South Africa. He mentioned some of the benefits to the country as foreign direct investment (FDI) of 298 million US dollars (about 452bn/-), over 1,200 jobs would be created during the construction of the mine and a further 600 permanent jobs.

Other benefits include a generation of approximately 220 million US dollars in foreign exchange per year.

"But this will also position Tanzania on the world map as it will be among the top ten world producers of uranium", Mr Devlin said.