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Chiratidzo Mabuwa

Oliver Kazunga, Senior Business Reporter
GOVERNMENT will soon engage foreign-owned mining firms that have not yet honoured their pledge to fund Community Share Ownership Trusts (CSOTs), Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Minister, Chiratidzo Mabuwa, has said.

The CSOTs initiative was launched by President Mugabe in 2012 under the indigenisation programme with a view to ensure communities have shares in foreign mining companies that exploit natural resources in their areas.

Speaking during the 2017 Annual Chiefs’ Conference in Bulawayo on Friday, Minister Mabuwa said mining firms had pledged to release over $100 million to support communities in which they operate under the CSOT initiative but only $39.1 million has been received to date.

“Under the Community Share Ownership Trusts, mining companies have so far released $39.1 million of the over $100 million they pledged. My ministry will soon be visiting the companies that are yet to honour their commitment with a view to encourage them to fulfil their promises,” she said.

Under the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act, foreign mining firms are mandated to cede 10 percent shares to communities they operate from.

Minister Mabuwa said it was imperative for the mining companies to release seed capital under the CSOT in order to create wealth for the locals through the setting up of community development and income generating projects in areas the firms were operating from.

“The Government has set up 61 CSOTs across the country and so far 35 of them have not started working on various projects because of lack of resources. I am also reliably informed that 26 of the 61 CSOTs have started implementing various programmes,” she said.

Minister Mabuwa told the chiefs that CSOTs were required to operate along strict business lines while balancing this with the social demands as opposed to leaning more towards the latter.

She said by embarking on income generating projects, CSOTs would ensure their programmes become sustainable in pursuing the economic empowerment agenda of the indigenous people.

The Government envisages that CSOTs should assume a national nature with benefits cascading to other communities where there are no natural resources being extracted by the foreign entities. — @okazunga