People must benefit from minerals-CUTS

Tue, 20 Jun 2017 13:54:24 +0000

BY MAILESI BANDA

 THERE is need for Government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and mining companies to find ways of ensuring that the Zambian mineral wealth benefits all, Consumer Unity and Trust Society (CUTS) coordinator Chennai Mukumba has said.

Ms. Mukumba said measures must be put in place to ensure that people benefited from the minerals which were a depleting resource.

Speaking in an interview with the Daily Nation, she said Zambia was rich and endowed with valuable minerals that needed to benefit the communities they were mined from.

“It is the responsibility of the civil society and the Government to ensure the Zambian people benefit from the minerals being mined in the country. Every Zambian deserves to have a share of the national cake either directly or through access to good health, education or infrastructure, constructed from the resources made from the mining sector,“ she said.

She explained that mining had a direct impact on the local communities, adding that most of the people lost the land meant for agriculture to the mines, leading them losing their only source of livelihood.

She lamented that regardless of the impact mining had on the livelihoods of these people they did not benefit from the mining activities.

She said the community needed to know how much of the minerals were leaving the country and that this could only be done if the companies exported the mineral out of the country legally.

She explained that civil society played the role of a mediator between the policy makers and the community, adding that a conclusive resolution could only be made if the stakeholders in the mineral value chain deliberated on the challenges and the opportunities in the sector.

She stated that the stakeholders in the mining industry should engage and cooperate in order to help build a strong and sustainable mining sector.