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NewsDay

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Chamber of Mines holds 74th annual conference

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THE Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe will today hold its 74th annual general conference in Nyanga at a time when consultations on the draft mining policy are underway throughout the country.

THE Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe will today hold its 74th annual general conference in Nyanga at a time when consultations on the draft mining policy are underway throughout the country.

Business Reporter

The   three-day conference would be held under the theme “Where to from here: Managing and developing the mineral wealth of Zimbabwe tomorrow”.

The mining sector is facing viability problems that include unavailability of working capital, old equipment and low investments.

Proposed increases in royalties, land policy and beneficiation issues are expected to take centre stage at the conference.

Mines and Mining Development minister Obert Mpofu will be the keynote speaker. Other speakers at the meeting include World Bank chief economist Nadia Piffarreti, South Africa’s mineral economists Paul Jordan and the president of the Chamber of Mines Winston Chitando.

The meeting is held annually and last year it attracted close to 300 people. Mining has become the most dynamic sector in the Zimbabwean economy, spearheading the country’s economic recovery since 2009 with an average annualised growth of more than 30%.

Statistics show that mineral exports rose by 230% over the 2009-2011 period, making mining the leading export sector.

In 2011, mineral exports accounted for 47% of total exports, led by platinum 43%, gold 28% and diamonds 20%.