Story by Stanley James, Business Editor
ZIMBABWE has recorded an over 40 % increase in gold production during the first six months of the year, with the small-scale miners dominating deliveries, according to official data.
Gold output between January and June surpassed 20 tonnes, up from around 13 tonnes recorded during the same period last year.
Industry experts have attributed the increase to firming global prices, improved production efficiencies, and enhanced support for artisanal and small-scale miners.
Mr Wellington Takavarasha, Chief Executive Officer of the Zimbabwe Miners Federation, stressed the need to sustain the current momentum.
“Going forward what is needed is to sustain the current trajectory by focusing on measures that sustain production in light of the policies being put in place to strengthen our structured currency, the Zimbabwe Gold,” he said.
Small-scale miners accounted for the majority of gold deliveries, while large-scale operations contributed approximately 20 % of total output.
The rise in production is playing a critical role in the accumulation of national gold reserves, which underpin the value and stability of the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) structured currency introduced by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe earlier this year.
Mr Persistence Gwanyanya, a member of the RBZ Monetary Policy Committee, highlighted the strategic importance of the mining sector.
“The gold mining sector plays a crucial role in the sustainable development of the economy towards reaching the intended results to the extent that the stability of the currency will be fully backed by the gold in the light of the building up of the reserves,” he said.
Honourable Winston Chitando, Minister of Mines and Mining Development, commended the Government’s ongoing support for artisanal miners.
“The government is doing all its best to capacitate the artisanal miners with the key focus being on how to facilitate growth by introducing a cocktail of measures to boost production,” he said.
Zimbabwe is targeting over 40 tonnes of gold production for the full year, with authorities confident that current trends indicate the country is well on course to meet or even surpass this target.
