Mining industry stakeholders met under the chairmanship of the Director-General of the Department of the Mineral Resources at the department’s offices in Centurion today, Friday, 6 November 2009.
The stakeholders included the leadership of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), the Chamber of Mines (COM), the South African Minerals Development Agency (SAMDA) and the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR).
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the short, medium and long term issues affecting the mining industry, including but not limited to:
* the preparedness of the industry’s stakeholders for the impending Mining Charter review
* concerns regarding the electricity challenges and potential implications of the proposed tariff increase
* the competitiveness of the sector and how to advance discussions on short, medium and long term drivers of transformation of the industry and
* integration of the NUM’s Mineworkers Development Agency(MDA) and the COM’s The Employment Bureau of Africa (TEBA) into a single mining development agency.
Task teams have been established to assess progress towards transformation and competitiveness of the industry.
The meeting also stressed the importance of tripartite engagement to discuss matters of common interest and to accelerate transformation and the competitiveness of the South African mining sector.
Enquiries:
Roger Baxter
Tel: 011 498 7663
E-mail: rbaxter@bullion.org.za
Ecliff Zwelitsha Tantsi
Cell: 082 9414 210
E-mail: etantsi@num.org.za
Jeremy Michaels
Cell: 082 772 1122
E-mail: jeremy.michaels@dme.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Mineral Resources
6 November 2009
