Tanzania Mining sector to grow due to the use of modern equipments

THE Mining Sector, which currently contributes 10 percent to the National GDP, will rise and grow more this period due to the government’s efforts to end all challenges hindering its growth.

Tanzania is having many minerals, there are gold, construction minerals, diamonds, tanzanite, gems, iron, copper, coal, uranium, nickel, copper, kaolin, titanium, cobalt, platinum and the new Merelaniite mineral recently discovered in tanzanite mining area.

The use of old equipment in the extraction and screening of gold ore and gems already have found an alternative modern equipment which is one of the most effective in achieving visible success.

The lack of modern mining equipment due to the lack of capital that afflicts small-scale miners to find a solution have been solved through emerging of revolutionary decision to raise money to start their own bank.

The members of the Federation of Miners’ Associations in Tanzania (FEMATA) have unanimously agreed to establish miners’ bank where more than 768 m/- were donated at the small miners’ fair in Mwanza city.

The decision to establish bank were obtained due to the existence of great challenges for miners to obtain loans from financial institutions due to the lack of collateral to enable them to purchase modern mining equipment.

Prime Minister Mr Kassim Majaliwa urged ministry of minerals and State Mining Corporation (STAMICO) and all stakeholders in the sector to remove all nuisance which hinders development of mining in the country.

He said government is determined to see that all challenges in the sector if are removed there will be development in country since the nation has abundant reserves of minerals.

The Deputy Minister of Minerals, Dr Steven Kiruswa, among other things, praised the establishment of the bank, so he ordered the creation of a task force to ensure that they oversee its establishment and that the government will support them.

He said that unity is always strength, so if they work together they will achieve the goal they have, so there decision to establish FEMATA Bank will bring positive changes to the mining sector in the country.

FEMATA President, Mr John Bina praised the efforts made to start the bank of small miners saying that this will help the government to get more tax from the sector thus helping in the development of the nation.

“We want our minerals to be sold at our 42 markets and 93 stations, we are not ready to see people squandering away our minerals,” said Mr Bina.

He said that the move to establish bank will enable the miners to get loans with concessional terms after a long-term complaint for lack of qualifications from banks in the country.

Busolwa Mine Director Mr Baraka Ezekiel said they should start with actions where he donated 200 m/ in cash to remove the uncertainty of getting loans from financial institutions in the country because it hinders the growth of small miners since they continue to use old technology that makes them unable to get enough minerals.

He said that any success is done in unity after joining forces together with determination to achieve the goal intended.

“I start today, not tomorrow, to contribute for establishment of the miners’ bank so that we can eliminate the problem of small miners to get capital to enable them have better mining equipment” said Mr Ezekiel.

Small-scale miners want to move to modern mining technology, after the improvements made by the government in the mining sector that have attracted big investors to bring equipment.

The discussion was raised at the small miners exhibition in Mwanza saying that the use of modern technology can increase the value chain in mining due to the use filtering, floatation machine separators and digging machines.

The use of mercury and other chemicals in processing minerals is dangerous to health and does not help them get more minerals, said small miners.

They asked the government and financial institutions to help them get loans so that they can increase the amount of minerals in their area.

“We have seen many investors showing their products in these exhibitions, and their prices are cheaper compared to importing from abroad,” said one of the small miners.

The ABC bank Manager in Mwanza Mr Emmanuel Makula in Mwanza, said his institution provides loans for mining equipment in advance of 20 percent to help the sector of small miners afford to do their activities well.

He said the loans are aimed at adding value chain in the sector and is provided after 24 hours while repayment is for five years.

PGW mineral processing Manager Mr Peter Walwa from Misungwi District in Mwanza Region asked the government to provide them with education and financial loans to enable them manage to improve mining work.

Some investors, including JXSC Mining Machinery Trading Limited, Director Mr Zhang Bin said the company is determined to help small miners with education and technical support to make them get more minerals.

“We have already reached to small miners in various mines in the Lake Zone, we have seen a challenge that requires urgent solutions between investors and the government so that small miners can grow,” said Mr Bin.

He said the new technology simplifies the process of mining gold and other minerals while also ends the use of mercury, which apart from endangering the health of miners, pollutes the environment.

In response to the use and distribution of chemicals in mines,STAMICO has asked the distributors of these chemicals to obtain registration to control the illegal importation of these products because they are harmful to human health said Senior Chemist of the Lake Zone, Mr Paul Mtango.

He said that this aims to avoid the harm that miners can get by not following precautions against chemicals in cleaning minerals.

Mr Mtango said that the effects of these chemicals include affecting the entire nervous system, skin diseases, chest and cancer.

He said Mercury and Sodium Cyanide should be used when a person wears equipment to prevent its effects such as gloves, wear shoes to prevent the penetration of chemicals into the body and wear other equipment to protect the user.

“So far we have registered 11 big companies to import chemicals and they are giving us cooperation to identify others who do not follow regulations,” said Mr Mtango.

He said that their presence in the mineral exhibition in Mwanza was to provide education to enable miners and other stakeholders learn the use of chemicals, understand their characteristics and how to protect themselves.

At the same time, the Operations Manager for Machine Rental, Mr Abdallahman Husseini, has asked miners to use modern equipment in mining to get more products.

He said that more products from the mining sector can be obtained once all stakeholders understand the benefits of using better equipment in the process.

Mr Husseini said that the use of modern mining equipments like wheel roader, water tanker, tipper are encouraged to get more minerals.

The contribution of small-scale miners in this country is appreciated to be having big contribution in the economy but if they shift to modern technology there will be more benefit.