Minex, organisers of countrywide exhibitions and conferences for small scale miners has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Zimbabwe Mining Safety, Health and Environmental Council (ZIMSHEC) to advocate for health and safety within the small scale mining sector.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Gweru on Friday, Minex Chairman Munyaradzi Hwengwere said the partnership will go a long way in connecting small scale miners with relevant stakeholders and to promote health and safety for miners.
“From what l know, ZIMSHEC has established chapters across the country and he (ZIMSHEC Chairmam Makumba Nyenje) has been also part of Minex for a long time since the days we were working with Fidelity Printers and Refiners.
“We realised the issue of engagement between small scale miners and the value chain was very weak so we need to bring some financiers, suppliers and policy makers together.
“So what we are doing is that we are signing an agreement between ZIMSHEC and Minex to then say you can never have productivity in mining unless you have safety and health, so that’s the reason why we signed the MOU so that we can work together to promote safety and health issues within the small scale mining sector,” he said.
The ZIMSHEC Chairman Makumba Nyenje said the partnership will help the council in implementing its five year plan to advocate for health and safety for small scale miners.
“ I think you have heard about Jumbo Mine, Cricket Mine, and all those mine accidents, so we are saying as miners we must be proactive, so we are equipping miners with all the basic information they need before they go underground.
“We are saying the best product to come out of the shaft is a live human being, then they can make their money. So it’s not just mere talk, as ZIMSHEC we are saying we want to collaborate with Minex because these guys have been doing quite a lot but nothing has been documented on our side.
“So we said to ourselves we need to be organised and team up with Minex, and we are saying we want to dwell much on the SHE policy and a lot of other things to do.
“We have a well-developed work plan for the next five years and its detailed. So we have said the best partner to team up with is Minex. I have been working in the shadows for them by mobilising some miners and l am saying this time around we need to mobilise miners to come and talk about SHE issues and making mining a business,” he said.
Minex is a virtual and physical platform which brings together small scale scale miners, suppliers, regulatory authorities, and financiers to shop, share and learn.
