The Zimbabwe Miners Federation say that they are committed to playing a part in stopping gold leakages at a time the economy is dogged by foreign currency shortages.
Addressing journalists after a leadership meeting with the Fidelity Printers and Refineries (FPR) yesterday, ZMF President Henrietta Rushwaya said they have agreed to set up a gold production taskforce in conjunction with Fidelity Printers and Refineries to curb rampant leakages of the precious metal.
“As ZMF we are committing to ensuring that we minimise gold leakages,”
“The issue to do with gold leakages has become cancerous in this country and as such, we felt it was high time that we join forces with gold partners who happen to be Fidelity in ensuring that all the people that are responsible for the illicit gold leakages are brought to book.
“To our sector, we are going around the country with Fidelity and (will) ensure that people will start to gain the much-needed confidence that is supposed to be there.
“We will, however, continue engaging Government on the 45–55 percent retention threshold, which we know if we come up with sound requests, Government will reconsider,” she said.
Meanwhile, FPR general manager Fradreck Kunaka said they are set to engage producers to get an appreciation of their costs before making scientific evidence-based representations to Government.
“We all know that at the end of the day all producers are rationale persons, they look at the value proposition and this is what has brought us together to make sure that at the end of the day the miner realises the true value of the commodity.
“It’s not about going to South Africa or not but what is important is the miner feels the value of the commodity that they would have delivered to Fidelity is the true value that they are paid.
“Today we have agreed to come up with a committee that will then look at the operational costs of the small scale miners so that at the end of the day when a presentation is being made to the relevant authorities of what we feel is the value proposition which miners should get is based on facts as opposed to where people just come and say we want a retention of this magnitude.
“We want to do it more scientifically by setting up that committee which will then advise the relevant authorities to set the right price, which gives the value proposition to the miner,” he said.
Zimbabwe last year produced a record 33,2 tonnes of the yellow metal and Government has set this year’s target at 40 tonnes. The target is to produce 100 tonnes per year from 2023 onwards.
