eBusiness Weekly
Ishemunyoro Chingwere
Fidelity Printers and Refineries (FPR) has issued 21 small-scale gold buying licences as part of efforts to plug in gold leakages particularly in the small scale sector. The buyers will operate across the country’s eight mining districts (provinces) and will target miners who cannot meet the 0,5 grammes minimum at which FPR accept deliveries.
The 0,5 grammes threshold in place all along meant that some small scale producers were being forced from the formal to the parallel market thus fuelling the black market.
But after representation from the umbrella body representing small scale miners — Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) — on strategies to curb the parallel market, FPR has acceded to the request to licence 21 additional small -scale players who will target that particular market.
ZMF president Henrietta Rushwaya, confirmed the development which she said will go a long way in aggregating the small gold leakages from the parallel market back into the formal market for the benefit of the economy.
“Fidelity has issued 21 gold buying licences to ZMF and these will cover the eight gold buying districts nationwide,” said Rushwaya.
“This licensing is a culmination of our representation to Fidelity for consideration of our members who produce less than 0,5 grammes which Fidelity does not buy. The non purchase of small volumes cumulatively adds up tonnes of gold, which end up in wrong hands thus resulting in serious leakages. It is the same leakages that end up with foreign currency on the black market because it would have been brought in using unscrupulous means,” she said.
Rushwaya also called upon miners to use formal channels and obtain receipts when selling their gold, which in turn will help the federation in resource allocations at a time when Government and other private players are coming on board to mechanise the sector.
The move to licence small-scale players is in line with Government efforts to curb leakages for national benefit in line with President Mnangagwa’s call to grow the economy to upper middle income earning by the year 2030.
Earlier in the month, speaking at the send-off of the gold mobilisation task-force, Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando, said Zimbabwe was on course to achieving a record 34 tonnes of gold deliveries owing to a raft of leakage curing measures.
“We certainly can stand proud to the fact that this task-force, its activities over the last few months has contributed immensely towards the big increase in gold delivered to Fidelity,” said Minister Chitando.
“The Permanent Secretary indicated that gold deliveries, to date, they are actually at a record because we are at 28 tonnes and the projection is that we could actually hit 34 tonnes which will be a record in the history of this country.
“That record, this task-force, has contributed immensely towards that,” he said.
