Tuesday, 25th July 2006 (1587 views)

An impassioned call has been made by the Swazi Observer to begin mining for gold in the Lufafa Mountains of Swaziland in order to bring much-needed jobs to the area.

The online newspaper notes that there is a valuable resource lying under the ground, but also points out that the country's Minerals Committee is apparently refusing to grant mining rights in the country.

Environmental concerns exist because part of Swaziland's gold deposits lie under the Malolotja Nature Reserve. However, increased mining would do much to aid the local economy.

"So much has been said about job creation in the country. Can one imagine the number of jobs that would be created in the gold mining project?" the Observer asked.

"Our economy is not doing well. Therefore, there is no prize for guessing that we need to utilise all the resources at our disposal to jerk it up. We need to do that now! Our people are hungry."

Recent reports suggest that Swaziland has around 21.3 million ounces of gold in its reserves, which is currently lying dormant.

Other African nations with mines operating to extract minerals such as gold, copper and diamonds include Zimbabwe, Ghana and Tanzania.

 

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