…vows to transform sector in Midlands
SYDNEY MUBAIWA
MBERENGWA-David Kilpin (pictured below), a local gold miner at Jumbo 91 and 93 blocks in Village 5 under Chief Bvute in Mberengwa district has reaffirmed his firm commitment to transform the mining sector.
Kilpin wants to do this by supporting the country’s national development goals under the gambit of Vision 2030 through responsible mining, employment creation and corporate social responsibility initiatives.
Kilpin wants to champion upliftment of communities in Village 5 for a mutually beneficial relationship that is in sync with the Zimbabwean government’s ”leavining no one and no place behind” mantra.
Kilpin told The Midweek Watch during a tour of his mining operations in Bvute near Mberengwa Business Centre that he was committed to good mining practices that protect the environment, dismissing claims from some villagers in the area that his activities were degrading the environment and contaminating water sources.
He showed journalists Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) reports from EMA as proof that his activities were not hostile to the environment and moved to assure the Mberengwa community of his long-standing commitment to champion socio-economic transformation in the area as Zimbabwe races to meet Vision 2030 targets.
“We have been here (Village 5) for the last thirteen years. The uniqueness of this mine is its proximity to the community and we have impacted positively through the generation of employment where we have contracted over 120 mining employees,” Kilpin said.
“We believe that we have a good relationship with the local community and to avoid clashes, we are undertaking fencing as already guided by the Environmental Management Agency (EMA),” he said.
The fast expanding gold miner revealed that his mining company is mobilising resources to start the construction of a primary school, an indication of his solid commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility programmes.
“We have gone the route of engaging the local community to build a school at one of my claims. The primary school will have the capacity to hold about 450 pupils to address the community needs. A ground breaking ceremony for the project has been slated for May this year.”
“It is something that fits in my expectations and I feel that education is a first port of call that impacts the younger generation,” stressed Kilpin.
His mining activities have been a boon for smallholder farmers in Village 5 who were benefiting from water they draw from one of his mining shafts. The water was both for irrigation and domestic use.
“We have a shaft that we pump water out of even during the dry season. We drink the water ourselves and we also share it with members of the community to irrigate their gardens and the water is very safe for consumption,” he said.
According to Kilpin his long term goal is to revolutionise small-scale mining in the Midlands province and the nation at large by promoting environmentally-friendly mining so that future generations can also be able to inherit land that is not degraded and is safe for their own use.
Kilpin revealed plans to also help other small scale miners to improve efficiency through the harnessing of the latest mining technology and also influence them not only to embark on responsible mining but also plough back into local communities.
”I am happy that we are working together very well and closely with the local community in my area where we have completed reclamation of pits that were created during mining. We are also fencing off our entire mining area so that livestock does not stray. All these activities are approved by the relevant offices including the Environmental Management Agency (EMA).
This was corroborated by Mberengwa District Development Coordinator Vafios Hlabati who confirmed that Kilpin’s mining company was following environmental guidelines.
“As a government, we have a committee of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and we visited the mining site where we instructed the proponent to fence the site and reclaim the pits.
“There is no water contamination at Jumbo mine and people should not panic because we are closely monitoring the situation,” he said.
Responsible mining is now a mandatory, enforceable standard in Zimbabwe with the government launching the Responsible Mining Initiative Part 2 in late 2025 to tighten environmental regulations, enforce rehabilitation and clamp down on rogue operations.
Kilpin said he was committed to help the Government fulfill its objective set under the Responsible Mining Initiative Part 2.
