Zimpapers Logo

Prisca Murwira in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

A mining conference has been slated for next week here on the sidelines of the Expo 2020.

The conference that has been dubbed Zimbabwe Mining Investment Conference and to be graced by the Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Winston Chitando on Thursday, will run under the theme: Zimbabwe Accelerating Growth Through Value Addition.

Zimbabwe is among 192 nations participating at the Expo.

The conference, which will be accessed on digital and online platforms, aims to attract the international investment community to invest in Zimbabwe.

The mining sector, which plays a fundamental role in the speedy attainment of the country’s vision of becoming an Upper-Middle Income Society by 2030, is one of Zimbabwe’s key strategic sectors participating at the world exposition.

The country is endowed with diversified mineral resource base of over 60 minerals. The sector aims to grow and generate an annual revenue of USD12 billion by 2023. The USD12 billion mining industry milestone was set out as one of the pillars towards the achievement of an upper middle-income economy by 2030.

Expo 2020 Dubai is an ideal platform to showcase Zimbabwe’s mining and mineral potential in efforts to attract investment into the country’s mining sector.

The Second Republic, under the leadership of President ED Mnangagwa, is making great strides in facilitating exploration and establishment of new mines, re-opening of closed ones, capacity utilization, beneficiation and value addition of minerals in addition to expansion of projects subject to various commercial and economic models. This has seen the reopening of Eureka Gold Mine in Guruve in 2018 which has been idle for 15 years.

The high-level conference will be attended by existing and potential investors, Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy, mining parastatals, Chamber of Mines Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Miners Federation members, among others who will showcase existing and planned projects and the vast investment opportunities in Zimbabwe’s mining sector.

Expo 2020 themed weeks will see subjects of what is being showcased by countries changing from time to time in efforts to diversify the exhibition to avoid monotony. Last week was the Urban and Rural Development week, which saw Zimbabwe hosting successfully the Smart Cities and Innovation Conference which was graced by His Excellency Mr. Dawood AlHajri, Director General of Dubai Municipality. Keen interest was expressed in the areas of solar energy, green architecture or cities and artificial intelligence, towards providing smart city solutions in Zimbabwe.

Based on the themed weeks the Government through its various Ministries diarized an events calendar which will see Government host events at Expo 2020 in efforts to show case opportunities in its key sectors.

Major highlights are expected from Government stakeholders as they unpack Zimbabwe’s aspirations and desires in terms of an enabling environment, policies, and incentives for investors, chiefly Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows into the country. Value addition and beneficiation, joint ventures are also envisaged at the end of the conference.

There is optimism that the conference will enable connection with big mining international players, which should in turn lead to increased trade and investment opportunities. The objectives of the Mining Investment Conference will be, among others to promote investment into the country’s mining sector; to clarify Zimbabwe’s mining policies through a unified voice between the public and private sector; to unpack the “Zimbabwe is open for business mantra” using the practical tangible results from existing mining operations, to seek competitive markets for the country’s mineral commodities and to seek opportunities for technology transfers within the mining sector value chains.

Expo 2020 Dubai, which opened its doors to the public on 1 October 2021 will end on 31 March 2022. The theme: Connecting minds, Creating the future represents the potential of what can be achieved through sharing of experiences, knowledge and forging meaningful collaborations. Zimbabwe is showcasing under the theme: “Zimbabwe the Land of Great Opportunities.

• Prisca Murwira is a Senior Information Officer in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services