The leadership of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, an independent professional institute of international standing for over 130 years, notes with sadness the gravity of the human tragedy that occurred at Stilfontein in the North West Province of South Africa over the last few weeks. The death of at least seventy-eight miners brings to light the need for collaborative efforts to address social, criminal, and legal challenges that arise as a result of progressive mine closures and the loss of mining jobs and the concomitant socio-economic distress that this causes in an already stressed South African economic climate.
While there are many dimensions to the illegal mining conundrum, this tragic incident has been precipitated by progressive minerals industry contraction, high levels of unemployment and poverty, and exacerbated by organised crime, it must nevertheless be seen and responded to primarily as a humanitarian crisis of significant proportion.
Environmental, Social, Governance and Sustainability (ESGS) considerations have become increasingly critical in the mining industry, the interlinkages of these elements are key to the future of the industry. The Institute remains committed to availing its willingness to provide a neutral platform from which to convene a multi-stakeholder dialogue on causalities and what pragmatic, effective measures should be taken in future situations of this nature. Furthermore, the Institute is fully prepared to provide the extensive mining and cross-discipline professional knowledge and expertise to support these dialogues toward resolving, averting, or mitigating future crises of this nature.
