The Community Youth Development Trust (CYDT) is disturbed by the recent arrest of Tashinga Nyasha Masinire found with gold worth an estimated US$734 000 at OR Tambo International Airport in South Africa. CYDT is deeply concerned by the fact that Mr Masinire is allegedly the ex-driver of Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) President Henrietta Rushwaya who was also nabbed with 6kgs of gold last year at Robert Mugabe International Airport, which allegedly was to be smuggled to Dubai. The recent case of Mr Masinire raises eyebrows and opens up a can of worms of the ZMF Presidents’ suspected involvement in gold smuggling activities in the country.
It is CYDT’s demand that the Mines Flora and Fauna Unit, ZACC and the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development;
- Investigate how the porous environment at Robert Mugabe International Airport has become an easy get way for gold smuggling to foreign countries.
- Address policy gaps and flaws within the Gold Trade Act to ensure compliance and address gold leakages. The Gold Trade Act under Part 11 3 (1) criminalizes artisan miners, as most of them do not possess or are holders of licenses of permits, or tributary, employees or agent of any of the persons mentioned above in Part 11 3 (1) of the Act. As such this has resulted in smuggling and illegal gold dealings to the black market and foreign countries because of fear of facing arrest or prejudice when they sell their, proceeds to Fidelity and other authorized agents. As such the Ministry should facilitate granting permits to deal in gold as part of the formalization process of the sector, which would also curb illicit gold financial flows and gold dealings.
- Fidelity Printers and RBZ to create conducive market rates that would promote and motivate miners to trade locally instead of smuggling to foreign countries in search of better market rates for the mineral produce.
Year after year Zimbabwe is losing billions of mineral revenues from gold smuggling, denying the cash-strapped economy of essential foreign-exchange revenues. Matabeleland South, a gold rich province, remains underdeveloped with majority of its people living in abject poverty despite the vast gold reserves embedded in the province because of gold smuggling. Last year, CYDT produced a position paper on licenses and permits, in a bid to address gold leakages in Matabeleland South and ensure sustainable development of the sector. CYDT demanded the formalisation of artisanal and small scale miners to help fight gold smuggling. It is also of concern that the gate keepers within the mining sector are the alleged perpetrators of corrupt activities and also enjoy impunity from the state. It is imperative that the Ministry of Mines and Fidelity Printers in collaboration with ZACC dialogue to address corruption within the gold mining sector. The mining industry is an impetus towards the achievement of National Development Strategy 1, realization of an Upper Middle Income Economy by 2030 and achieving the US 12 Billion Mining revenue by 2023. As such it is imperative that the government address illicit gold financial flows and gold dealings within the sector, through crafting policies and legal frameworks that create sustainable development and facilitate accountability and transparency within the gold mining sector.
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