eBusiness Weekly
HARARE – Zimbabwe will ext week host a mining conference in which over 20 countries have shown interest to participate, a cabinet Minister said on Monday.
The conference, to take place on February 27 and 28, comes shortly after the Chamber of Mines said the industry was in need of a capital investment of over $7 billion for sustenance and growth.
Zimbabwe is endowed with over 40 minerals among them gold, platinum, diamonds, as well as little known ones like lithium and tungsten which are however slowly gaining prominence.
“It is the intention of this government to drive growth and development of the mining industry and usher an environment that derives maximum benefits from our mineral resource endowment,” said Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando.
He said when fully exploited, the resources could “significantly contribute to the revival of our country.”
Chitando said the conference would allow the industry to showcase opportunities for investment and business as well as for arranging project finances.
“We are excited to have engagements between the Zimbabwe mining industry and international investors,” he said, adding the government was working flat out to make the investment climate attractive,” he said.
The mining industry is this year expecting to register a marginal increase to $2.5 billion in revenue earnings, up from $2.38 billion in 2017 on the back of a slight rise in production.
The industry, a major exporter, has through the Chamber of Mines warned that it remained fragile as it continued to operate below capacity due to a host of challenges, top of them shortages of foreign currencies that were resulting in delays in foreign payments, inadequate capital, high cost structure (high electricity tariff, sub-optimal fiscal charges), power disruptions, low exploration activities and depressed metal prices mainly for platinum and nickel. – New Ziana
