Mining
Stakeholders tips Govt. on corruption eradication in mineral sector
June 06, 2024 / Wahard Betha
Stakeholders acting in the extractives sector has tipped the Malawi Government through the Ministry of Mining on some of the incentives to reduce corrupt practices in the mineral sector.
Commenting during a panel discussion on Zodiak Television, Human Rights Advocate for Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR), Loveness Thole said the government has all it is needed to fight corruption in the extractives sector and what is needed is the enforcement of the laws.
Thole said for the Government to ensure that corrupt practices within the sector has been reduced, they require to enforce containments of the new Mines and Minerals Act of 2023.
“Government should just enforce what is in the laws. Our laws contain almost everything including manning any corrupt practices.”
“What was lacking in the old act was enforcement and I believe if the ministry can enforce what is the new law, no any corruption can happen within the sector,” said Thole.
In his remarks, Consulting Geoscientist, Igneous Kamwanje urged for unity within the sector in order to put to an end corruption in the sector.
Kamwanje further appealed to Malawi Extractives Industry Transparency Initiative (MWEITI) to perform its duties including implementing some of the recommendations written in annual reports.
“We need to have unity of direction. Would love the MWEITI to be performing its duties. Almost every year they produce reports and what is written in their reports every year it does not work on the ground.”
“The non-state actors like them, they bring in checks and balances in terms normalization and bringing in standards in enforcement of the laws. For the corruption to end the people needs to be united and there is a need for disclosure of information.”
“Because when the information is disclosed to the public we both move in one direction and everyone know where we are going.”
“Despite that mining is at infant stage but there is a lot that is going on in terms of institutions which is overlaps in some of its mandates creating a room for corruption,” said Kamwanje.
The panel discussion was organized in line with Empowering Stakeholders Driving Just Resources Governance through open Contracting and Licensing Project being championed by Perekezi Consultancy under empowering Just Energy Transition (JET) minerals challenge with funding from USAID.
In a separate interview, Representative for Perekezi Consultancy Chikomeni Manda advised the government to be transparent in some of the processes conducted within the sector to ensure no deal is suspicious to the general public.
Manda also tipped the ministry to ensure speed process of contracts and licenses saying delays for finalize the documents influences the investors to indulge in corruption to meet the deadline.
He said: “The government should ensure transparency in how they handle licensing issues to build public trust and confidence.
“It is also very important to reduce the long waiting time for licenses as the more it delays, the investor resort to corrupt practices with the aim of speeding the process,” he said.
Meanwhile, a number of Mining Development Agreements (MDAs) are still in pipeline awaiting final approval by the ministry of mining.
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Rehabilitation:
The establishment of a stable and self-sustaining ecosystem, but not necessarily the one that existed before mining began. In many cases, complete restoration may be impossible, but successful remediation, reclamation, and rehabilitation can result in the timely establishment of a functional ecosystem.
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Remediation:
The cleanup of the contaminated area to safe levels by removing or isolating contaminants. At mine sites, remediation often consists of isolating contaminated material in pre-existing tailings storage facilities, capping tailings and waste rock stockpiles with clean topsoil, and collecting and treating any contaminated mine water if necessary.
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