Industry still ‘plagued by issues of noncompliance with Mining Charter’ – MIT
Ahead of the release of the Mineworkers Investment Trust’s (MIT’s) 2016 financial results later this month, Mining Weekly spoke to MIT COO Simphiwe Nanise earlier this month to review some of its highlights for 2016.
He noted that MIT, which provides financial benefits for members of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), was invited to participate in the Presidential review of the National Development Plan (NDP), which took place in June last year.
At the review, MIT highlighted the importance of the mining industry for the development of South Africa’s economy, but noted that the industry was still plagued by issues of noncompliance with the Mining Charter, particularly in relation to ownership, procurement and housing targets.
“There are areas of compliance in which mining companies are doing well, but there are also areas that need to improve,” Nanise said.
According to the Mining Charter, mines should be 26% black-owned, a target which some of the mines had reached, he said, adding that some, though, “have a lot more to do”.
Regarding the Chamber of Mines’ (CoM’s) position in terms of ‘once empowered, always empowered’ in the debate on black ownership in the industry, Nanise pointed out that MIT did not agree with the CoM’s position, arguing that mining companies had to maintain 26% black ownership throughout the operating life of a mine for meaningful transformation to take place in the industry.
Another point of contention for MIT was housing arrangements for mineworkers, which was the onus of mining companies, according to the Mining Charter.
Nanise said that, while there were pockets of excellence, particularly at mines in the North West, generally, mines did not provide adequate housing for employees.
He pointed out that the prevalence of informal settlements around mines was evidence of the lack of compliance with the charter’s housing requirements, adding that the conversion of hostels from single-sex units into family units had not been satisfactory.
Nanise was also concerned about noncompliance regarding procurement, particularly in terms of procuement from companies owned by historically disadvantaged South Africans (HDSAs).
He said that, while mining companies did make an effort to procure from local suppliers, particularly stationery and catering services, they had not “actively pursued measures to transform areas that would have had the greatest impact”.
“Mines create an economy outside mining, which, in turn, supplies the mines. There are people that depend on the existence of the mine for their survival,” Nanise stated. By allocating a larger portion of their procurement spend to HDSAs, mines would assist in reaching the goals of the NDP.
Nanise added that retrenchments remained the most significant threat to MIT’s beneficiaries. Last year, the trust allocated about R33-million to the Mineworkers Development Agency, which provides financial aid for retrenched NUM members and their dependants.
The Elijah Barayi Memorial Training Centre trained over 400 workers in 2016.
The JB Marks Trust received about R70-million, which was used to provide bursaries for about 750 individuals in 2016.
The MIT also provided about R8-million for the Sam Tambani Research Institute to help improve the socioeconomic benefits received by mineworkers.
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