Editorial Comment: Companies must stop importing labour

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The government in a bid to ensure communities benefit directly from their natural resources introduced the Community Share Ownership Scheme whereby companies exploiting natural resources in a given area cede 10 percent shares to the community. A number of communities have started enjoying the fruits of this government initiative and mines have taken the lead in contributing to these schemes. In Shurugwi, Unki Mines has already paid in full the $10 million seed money to set up the Tongogara Community Share Ownership Scheme Trust.

The trust has already implemented a number of development projects which include the construction of a new school, Musasa primary school, a mortuary at Zvamabande Rural Hospital, drilling of boreholes and road construction among others.
Communities in Zvishavane have also benefited from the trust set up by Mimosa Platinum Mine. A number of development projects have also been implemented in the district which include the construction of classrooms, drilling of boreholes and upgrading of clinics. In Gwanda in Matabeleland South, the community share trust has funded a number of projects which include upgrading of clinics and rehabilitation of irrigation schemes.

A number of companies are yet to contribute to trusts in their respective areas and it is hoped most of them are working towards meeting their obligation. The government has said it is not going back in ensuring that communities benefit directly from their natural resources. Gone are the days when resources were carted away to develop other countries while the locals who are the owners of the resources were left wallowing in abject poverty.

The companies that exploit resources apart from contributing to community share ownership scheme trusts are expected to employ locals. It is therefore very disturbing to learn that mining companies in Gwanda are importing labour while thousands of youths in the district are unemployed. Gwanda residents told members of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy that mines in the district were bringing workers from outside the district instead of employing locals.

They said many of the unemployed in the district were now resorting to illegal gold panning which has seen a number of them being jailed. The residents said it was unfair for mines to bring workers from outside the district especially general workers. We totally agree with Gwanda residents that the bulk of workers of the mines in the district should be locals.

The mines should, however, be free to employ skilled manpower from outside the district. It is only logical for companies to give first preference to locals when it comes to employing general workers. Companies, we want to believe, would not want government to come up with a piece of legislation to compel them to employ locals.

When locals are employed by a company, the company belongs to the community and as such there is co-existence between the company and the community. Companies that are usually sabotaged by communities are those companies that are divorced from the communities they operate in.

We want to implore companies to ensure the bulk of their employees are locals in order to create harmonious relations with the communities whose resources they are exploiting.

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