The Canadian government is looking forward to holding its yearly breakfast discussion forum on the themes discussed at the Mining Indaba, as it regards the event’s discussions as a means to ensur- ing that some of the most pressing and relevant issues impacting on the global mining industry are openly discussed, Canada’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Gaston Barban, tells Mining Weekly.

The government of Canada, in cooperation with the Canadian Council on Africa, has a pavilion on the trade show floor of the twentieth yearly Investing in African Mining Indaba, to be held at the Cape Town International Conference Centre from February 3 to 6. “Through its Canada pavilion, the government will showcase its experience as one of the largest mining nations in the world, the state of the industry – domestically and internationally – and developments relevant to the mining sector,” Barban explains.

He adds that Canada will also highlight initiatives in which it is involved, which demonstrate government’s “commitment to supporting the responsible and sustainable development of Africa’s mineral resources”.

He notes that people visiting the Canada pavilion will have the opportunity to learn about the experiences of the Canadian government in mining.

“The audience will benefit from learning about the policies, programmes and best practices that are a hallmark of the Canadian mining sector. Attendees will also learn about Canada’s focus on development work with resource-rich developing countries, helping them to build resource governance capacity and improve local economic development, as well as enabling communities to significantly increase the benefits of the mining sector through training and skills development,” he explains.

“Our Canada pavilion serves as the anchor for representatives from Natural Resources Canada, Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada and Export Development Canada. The pavilion provides a platform to engage with other governments, companies doing business in the resource sector and other stakeholders. It will also provide information on Canadian mining policies and the capabilities of Canadian mining companies.

“The Canada pavilion is being presented in partnership with the Canadian Council on Africa, which is a pan-Canadian nongovernmental organisation working to facilitate and promote mutu- ally beneficial cooperation between the private and public sectors of Canada and Africa,” notes Barban.

He says countries in Africa stand to benefit from the knowledge and experience of Canada’s mining industry. “These countries will come to understand why Canadian mining companies make good partners for the development of their natural resources, particularly in countries where there may be no mining history and, consequently, no expertise or skills base to explore and mine the resources,” Barban notes.

He attributes Canada’s involvement in the event to its ability to facilitate contact between people interested in the mining industry. “Contacts are made here, projects get pitched to potential investors and deals are made. The Mining Indaba is where many of the decisions about which projects will get financed are made,” he says, adding that this activity helps develop the African mining industry.

The Canadian government first participated in the Mining Indaba in 1996, but it has increased its visibility at the event since 2002 with a pavilion on the trade show floor.