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THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said yesterday it is mobilising long-term affordable financing for miners in the gold and diamond sectors as it seeks to increase contribution of the minerals to export earnings.

RBZ governor John Mangudya said the two minerals were key to the recovery of the struggling mining sector and of the overall economy.

The RBZ is also pushing new law reforms to decriminalise gold possession.

Zimbabwe has slowly pushed up gold production in the last few years, surging to 13.9 tonnes in 2014 and $18.6 tonnes last year and earning the country nearly $700 million.

The target for this year is 24 tonnes.

Mangudya said about $25 million was availed in the second half of last year to the gold sector in support of production activities.

“The bank is increasing access to long-term financing by continuing to source affordable long term financing for the mining sector. The bank is therefore targeting to deploy more resources to the gold sector,” he said.

Through its gold buying and processing subsidiary, Fidelity Printers, Mangudya said small scale gold miners would also be provided with equipment.

Small scale miners last year upped their contribution to production of the yellow metal to 40 percent from 25 percent the previous year.

The RBZ said it was also pushing for decriminalisation of gold possession which would allow individuals to freely sell the mineral to Fidelity on a “no questions asked” basis.

Monitoring of players in the sector will also be tightened to curtail illegal activities, Mangudya said.

The RBZ governor once again expressed displeasure at failure of the diamond mining sector to make any meaningful contributions to the economy.

“Unlike gold and tobacco which have significantly contributed to the liquidity in the economy, diamonds have been a great disappointment,” Mangudya said.

In neighbouring countries such as Botswana and Namibia, he said, diamond mining ventures had greatly impacted economic activity, which was not the case with Zimbabwe raising serious questions on issues of transparency and accountability as well as leakages.

The central bank was supportive of efforts to merge operations of the sector into one company called the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC), Mangudya said.

He said about $30 million for working capital was being mobilised for the ZCDC to enable it to reach the target of six million carats that the government has set for this year.

“The bank’s great desire is to ensure that the ZCDC grows and becomes what Fidelity Printers is to the RBZ. The two, Fidelity Printers and ZCDC should become the agents for economic transformation in Zimbabwe.” — New Ziana