Presenter Mwiya Mwandawande, National CoordinatorDate 30 April 2015

Mining and Community Livelihoods in AfricaExtractive Industry Transparency Alliance, Fair Green Project Action Aid, Zambia

Paper organisation

• Section one – Overview of Mining and Community Livelihoods

• Section two – Engagement

• Section three – Develop

• Section four –Empower

• Section five – Influence

• Section six - Recommendations

Introduction• Zambia like many African countries heavily relies on export of mineral resources as a

source of income.

• Mineral resources however are not reliable sources of income because they are non-renewable and their prices are constantly fluctuating as compared to agricultural products.

• A country therefore should be able to accumulate enough resources from the mining industry when it is at its peak and redistribute these resources to other industries so as to diversify the economy.

• The ability to accumulate wealth from the mining industry depends on the industry’s level of transparency and effectiveness of the tax regime that impact on community livelihoods.

• The paper seeks to share experiences of EITA in mining and Community livelihoods focusing on Engagement, Development, Empowerment and influencing policy.

Overview of Mining and Communities• Communities lack access to information that will allow them to negotiate from a

position of knowledge and power.

• Mines force communities off their land and from there homes and do not compensate them adequately for this forced removal.

• Mines disrespect the culture and heritage of communities.

• Mines divide communities and corrupt structures of traditional and democratic governance.

• Mines prevent communities from participating fully in the benefits of mining such as joint ownership, employment, procurement and management of mines.

• Mines do not plan and make proper provision for mine closure and completion, leaving communities with massive environmental costs o society.

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 1: Consulting the community:

The mining company must consult the community on whose land it intends to operate. It must honestly and transparently explain all the implications, costs and benefits of mining, including the hidden unseen impacts of the operation across the LOM.

• Step 2: Exploration/prospecting:

The mining company sub-contracts or sends its own geologists to look for minerals. This often involves using drilling rigs to extract core samples to see if the mineral they are looking for is present.

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 3: Raising funds for the operation:

The mining company approaches financial institutions such as banks to fund the mining operation on the basis of geological reports showing that the mine would be vi-able or profitable. The mining company can also list on the local or a foreign stock exchange thus raising funds from shareholders. Communities should consider different forms of shared ownership and insist on a form of shared ownership that will see some of the real benefits of mining coming to the community, while mitigating the negative impact of mining.

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 4: Consulting the Community:

Before the construction of a mine starts the implications of the construction of the mine should be discussed honestly and transparently with the community. New roads and road hazards will appear, dust levels will increase, large numbers of outsiders will suddenly arrive, the community might have to relocate to a safer area. The community might lose agricultural land and water. The right of the community to continued prior and informed consent should be recognized, as well as the right of the community to independent legal representation and expert technical, social and environ-mental advice must be recognized by the mining company at all times.

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 5: Constructing the mine:

After doing an Environmental Impact Assessment and developing an Environmental Management Plan and submitting social and labour plans to the DME, the mining company now has to sink a shaft or pre-pare the area for open cast mining. It has to build offices, access roads, electricity connections, mineral silos etc. It also has to hire labour.

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 6: Operationalising the mine:

The mine is now a situation where it can begin to produce the mineral that is being mined. Large amounts of waste is produced which goes to either tailings dams or to rock waste facilities. The mined ore goes to processing/concentrate plants and to smelters. The final product is usually exported. The price per ounce or per tone is determined by the global demand or market for the mineral. The mineral is referred to as a commodity. The mine poses lots of risks to the community and the environment during this phase and communities should remain vigilant at all times.

Community Consultation

Engaging Communities and Stakeholders

• Step 7: Mine Closure and completion.

Mining is not sustainable because mineral reserves are finite. This means that a mine cannot go on forever it has to close down once the mineral is finished. The mining company has a responsibility to close down the mine and to restore the environment and to leave a community that is better off than when the mine started and not worse off. Communities must be aware of their rights and the mine’s responsibilities during closure and completion and not allow the company to leave with-out doing a proper job at completion.

Mine Closure

Develop and Build Knowledge

• Networks should have common purposes with community driven evidence based Advocacy

• Communities should be have basic understanding of Impact of Mining on Livelihoods

• Government line Departments should have the capacity to monitor Mining Development

Conflict Tree

Empowerment should be about Livelihoods

• Local employment

• Local business opportunities for communities

• Improved food security

• Education

• Health

• Clean Environment

• Participatory and inclusive decision making

A Mine and Community and Individual Well Being Web

Influencing Policy and Legislation

• Policies and legislation must address community needs

• Harmonisation of policy and Legislation e.g Mineral Revenue Sharing Mechanisms

• Participatory and inclusive decision making in policy development and implementation

• Gender responsive policies and development and community driven Advocacy

Recommendations

• The principal benefits of a mining industry to any country can be identified as:

1. Employment creation● Economic and social development

2. Local infrastructure development

3. Providing linkages to other sectors

4. Enhancing foreign exchange earnings

5. Providing a greater share of government revenue with communities.

Thank you for the attention!!!