Mining must uplift communities, not just benefit corporations

One of the most cynical ploys politicians around the world use to railroad through development and mining projects – which benefit huge multinational corporations – is to proclaim that “the poor will benefit”.

Small, isolated rural communities are usually promised jobs and opportunities the development will bring. In practice, though, the jobs which materialise are often low-grade, low-paying and not long-term.

The community gains very little, even when fancy roads are put into the area, because the roads are there solely to remove and transport goods to and from the development.

Once the miners or developers have moved on, the community is worse off, with little government support or money to rehabilitate a ruined environment.

We hope this will not be the case with the community of Xolobeni in the Eastern Cape, where various government ministers and departments are pressuring people into accepting a mine run by an Australian company.

Such has been the haste and energy with which these government factotums have been pushing the project in recent weeks, we wonder what’s in it for them?

The new Mining Charter will be worth nothing if it does not secure a long-term future for communities like Xolobeni.

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