RESIDENTS of a community located near one of the world’s biggest mines are set to finally benefit from the mineral extraction conducted on their ancestral land.
Acifra Ready Mix Concrete has partnered with the community of Ga-Chaba in Mapela, Limpopo through the Ga-Chaba Communal Property Association (CPA) to process waste rock extracted during mining.
The waste rock will be crushed into aggregate material that will be used for road surfacing, for track ballast of rail tracks, manufacturing of bricks, paving bricks, concrete mix and for foundations.
Community leader and vice chairperson of the Ga-Chaba CPA, Lovious Shiburu, said the project which is set to commence at the end of November will bring employment opportunities to the area.
“Another issue is around development within the community. The very products that will be produced will also be utilised to upgrade the area from paving the streets to fixing our roads and building storm waters, which we do not have,” Shiburu said.
“The money generated can also be repurposed to help orphans around the area and upgrade our schools,” he said.
He said in the last 12 years the community has attempted to secure funders for various projects also within the agriculture space but their attempts have been in vain.
The project involves the recycling of waste rock that has resulted from open cast mining by reprocessing the rocks into aggregate material. Aggregate is raw material that is generated from natural resources.
Ga-Chaba which comprises 500 households is one of 42 traditional communities that fall under the Mapela Traditional Council. It is closely situated to the Mogalakwena Platinum Mine which is the largest open cast platinum mine in the world.
But even with so much wealth surrounding this small community, it is unfortunately still described as impoverished due to its severe lack of resources and economic activity.
In its 2016 report titled National Hearing on the Underlying Socio-economic Challenges of Mining-affected Communities in South Africa the SA Human Rights Commission highlighted the challenges facing mining host communities.
“When underpinned by good governance and a respect for the community and environment in which they operate, extractive industries harness significant potential to transform a country’s social and economic development. Employment opportunities, increased investment and access to revenues can drive economic growth and reduce poverty at local, regional and national levels. However, often these opportunities are not realised and the negative impacts of extractive industries detract from and undermine the potential benefits and opportunities that accompany them,” the SAHRC noted.
Acifra Ready Mix Concrete proposed this project to mitigate against the dire economic conditions prevailing in the community.
The project is set to create jobs and act as a platform for skills transfer and financial sustainability within the community.
Acifra has partnered with Spectrium Graduate School of Business to help facilitate the skills transfer.
This opportunity is not only open to the prospective employees of the project but will also be extended to the broader community.
Acifra is a small-scale mining company that specializes in crushing and screening of waste rock. As the implementer and manager that supplies the capital and operational expenditure, it will access the waste rocks from Anglo American and Mogalakwena Platinum Mine.
Acifra’s chief executive officer Governor Mononyane the project took a little under three years to complete due to compliance stages and acquiring a permit from the Department of mineral energy and resources.
“On a daily basis, we read about how companies come and dictate their own terms within communities without proper consultation and just get away with it. But for us, it was all about making a difference. When we talk about Ubuntu, we need to be the ones who practice it,” he said.
Mononyane added that whatever tonnage that will be sold will go into the community’s coffers regulated by the Ga-Chaba CPA. The proposed project was launched at the end of September, with Anglo American Mine being the potential buyer of the material once processed into aggregate.
“Acifra came in to forge a proper structure that can represent the whole community. We appointed an attorney to explain the difference between a trust and a Communal Property Association. An MOU was then signed between the Ga-Chaba Communal Property Association and Acifra which states our joint venture for the crushing and screening of the waste rock into aggregate material,” said Mononyane.
“We hope this project will also attract skilled individuals to return to Ga-Chaba and use their expertise for the betterment of our community. Things are looking bright,” he added. Operations for the site development are expected to commence at the end of November right after the planning process. – news@mukurukuru.co.za
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