Govt offers 1 million hectares of land for gold mining

Harare: The government is in the process of releasing one million hectares of land for gold mining purposes in all the country’s provinces to boost the mineral’s production.

Addressing delegates at the Women in Mining breakfast meeting in Bulawayo yesterday at the on-going Mining, Engineering and Transport (Mine Entra) Expo, Zimbabwe Miners’ Federation president, Aplonia Munzverengwi said the government was in the process of releasing one million hectares of land for gold mining purposes.

“We want to have more women miners in all our regions,” she said.

“I am urging women to go in because there are opportunities right now in chrome and gold mining.

“We have the capacity to surpass the 12 tonnes target against 16 tonnes from the big miners. I am warning the big mines that we are coming.”

In 2015, small-scale miners produced seven tonnes of gold, which increased to 9,4 tonnes last year.

“From the one million hectares, we need our chunk as women, we want to compete with men, we have the capacity,” Munzverengwi said. newsday