President Mnangagwa officially opened the 27th Mine Entra Expo, emphasizing the significant growth in Zimbabwe’s mining sector.
He praised the expo’s role in connecting industry stakeholders and highlighted the theme, “Unearthing Success: The Mining Value Chains, Innovation and Industrialisation Nexus,” which aligns with the government’s focus on mineral value addition and beneficiation.
Minerals play a crucial role in modern society, and the mining sector must adopt new technologies to remain competitive and sustainable. These technologies can improve efficiency, reduce waste, and ensure the exploitation of complex mineral deposits. The benefits of mining should extend beyond extraction to positively impact communities and the planet.
Innovation and technology are essential for improved efficiencies, reduced costs, and accelerated industrialization. The mining industry will affect every facet of society and must adapt accordingly. The sector should promote rapid industrialization through spinoffs into other sectors and localized value chains.
The government encourages mining houses to strengthen synergies with suppliers and institutions of higher learning to develop technological solutions. New frontiers like electro-mobility, invisible zero-waste mining, and continuous mining should be prioritized. Artificial Intelligence can be employed in research and development for engineering design, mineral deposit quantification, smart mining, and market forecasting.
The government will provide additional incentives and support to companies that invest in local beneficiation and value addition. This will encourage companies to process their minerals in Zimbabwe rather than exporting them raw. President [Name] challenged attendees to procure goods and services from local suppliers to support the domestic economy and create jobs.
Through these measures, Zimbabwe aims to achieve the Africa Mining Vision of “Transparent, equitable and optimal exploitation of mineral resources to underpin broad-based sustainable growth and socio-economic development” across the continent.