Mining in Africa must avoid distraction from its measured progress

Despite the geopolitical uncertainties affecting the global economy, Africa’s mining sector remains well placed to expand its economic and social contribution.

Speaking from the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town, SRK Consulting managing director Andrew van Zyl highlighted the progress being discussed in safe and responsible mining. In a week where much media attention focused on changes to international trade tariffs, the Indaba again drew a large international contingent of mining stakeholders.

“The tone of the Indaba reflects the generally upbeat sentiment in mining today, and reminds us that there is considerable momentum behind moving mining in positive directions,” said Van Zyl. “The world’s population is still heavily dependent for its daily survival on commodities that have to be mined, so it is incumbent on all involved to continuously improve the enterprise of mining.”

He noted that, notwithstanding ongoing changes in the macro-economic environment, the responsibilities, risks and aspirations of mines and their local communities remained relatively constant. These include issues related to safety, engagement, water stewardship, tailings management and power supply.

“A critical focus in mining – as the Indaba’s ‘future-proofing’ theme suggests – is to create as much stability and predictability as possible – so that operations can continue to produce safely and cost-effectively,” he said. “This in turn helps to streamline and assure the key benefits that arise from mining, such as employment and procurement from the local economy.”

In a sector that prioritised personal safety, there was considerable innovation underway in many fields – even if this was implemented cautiously over time.

“There are plenty of reasons to celebrate the achievements of the mining sector, and the Indaba is an acknowledgement of that,” said Van Zyl. “In 2024, for example, South African mining was able to achieve its lowest fatality rate yet.”

Speakers at the Indaba from the Mineral Council South Africa hailed the long-term trend in safety performance, while acknowledging that any death was one too many. They also noted that the sector had substantially reduced the incidence of tuberculosis, silicosis and noise induced hearing loss over recent years.

The event also highlighted continued sustainability efforts, with the significant investment in cleaner renewable energy by local mining companies, in the drive to meet decarbonisation targets while both increasing power availability and reducing power costs. An important sustainability step towards the development of renewable diesel was also taken at the Indaba, involving mining companies Anglo American and De Beers, alongside chemical giant Sasol.

He added that the active participation at the Indaba of leading industry bodies like the ICMM shows that African mining is a partner of growing importance in the global drive towards responsible mining.

“It is also significant that the ICMM has selected South Africa as the location of the Global Tailings Management Institute – affirming the key role South African engineers have played in the development and implementation of the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM),” he said. “This also highlights that South Africa offers world-class technical solutions at competitive rates.”