JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The Chamber of Mines (CoM) is supporting the global VCI Innovation State of Play assessment as part of its commitment to innovation in South African mining.
The assessment of South Africa’s mining industry started in September and will be completed before the end of the year.
CoM modernisation senior executive Sietse van der Woude said in a statement issued on Thursday that innovation was back on the chamber’s agenda.
“We have made great progress through our collaboration with stakeholders and are fully committed to innovation reshaping the industry and improving lives.”
The CoM believes the global benchmarking of South Africa’s mining innovation status will enable effective integration of innovation into its strategy.
VCI’s report will be published in 2017. The chamber and VCI expect the outcomes of the report will assist stakeholders in the collaboration necessary to drive mining innovation.
VCI is a management consulting organisation specialising in strategy and innovation in the mining industry, exploring innovation opportunities and challenges around skills development, employment relations, cost containment, safety and health and sustainability.
The CoM has made use of key findings from previous VCI reports to shape the foundation of its own innovation-focused strategy, in particular, greater alignment between its business strategy and the innovation ecosystem.
The upcoming report will be more targeted and is supported by the International Council on Mining and Metals and other industry insiders.
To assist with the global benchmarking of South Africa’s mining innovation, the chamber has assisted VCI in facilitating “drill-down” interviews with key stakeholders, which will take place in November.
The report will include a case study on Mining Phakisa, a Presidency-led initiative for collaboration in South African mining. It recognises Mining Phakisa as an exemplary approach to solving complex challenges through a visible and active innovation ecosystem.
VCI founding partner Graeme Stanway said that, in terms of industry collaboration in South Africa, it would be a challenge to identify a country better equipped to be a shining light for innovation in developing countries.
The chamber’s participation in this initiative is one of the steps being taken to ensure the longevity of the South African mining industry – unlocking resources previously inaccessible as a result of economic, health and safety reasons.