Zim eyes US$7 billion mining economy by year end
By Ndanatsiwa Tagwireyi
President Emmerson Mnangagwa is optimistic that Zimbabwe’s mining sector will contribute more than US$7 billion by end of 2022 amid indications that the sector had already reached US$6 billion by March this year.
Zimbabwe earned approximately $3.2 billion and $5.7 billion in export earnings in 2020 and 2021 respectively. This followed the launch of the 12 Billion Mining Economy by 2023 roadmap driven by gold, platinum, diamond, chrome, iron ore, lithium and other minerals.
Addressing people who graced the ‘Listening President Business Luncheon’ held in Kwekwe this July, the President noted significant strides made in the mining sector from 2018 when the sector was contributing about $2.9 billion annually.
“Our mining sector was about $2.9 billion, we then introduced policies in the sector when we supported our people to modernize, expand and develop our mines and said within four years (up to next year), we shall reach a 12 billion mining sector because we have most of the minerals you can think of,” he said.
According to President Mnangagwa, Zimbabwe will jump to a $12 billion mining economy by mid 2023 courtesy of big lithium mines, gold mines and focused economic policies that have come into play; contributing to the mining sector’s growth. He also spoke about improvement in the country’s overall revenure generation.
“We used to have an annual $3 billion revenue in the country, in December 2021 we had $9.2 billion revenue and this year we are going to exceed 10 billion,” President Mnangagwa said.
The President spoke of other potential opportunities in lithium, gas and oil extraction highlighting that Zimbawe has the biggest known quantities of lithium on the African continent followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“We have gas oil which begins on the North East of Botswana coming to Hwange; Matebeleland North and Zambezi. When it gets to Muzarabani, it is bigger and again, going towards Cahora Bassa,” he said. “According to the American Statistics, that gas or oil will last over 225 years.”
