President Emmerson Mnangagwa has officiated at the ground breaking ceremony of a $4,2 billion platinum mining project at Karo Resources' Mhondoro-Ngezi mining site, where he noted that projects of this magnitude are exactly what the country needs for its transformation.

The ground breaking ceremony will pave way for the construction of a mining complex along the Great Dyke in Mashonaland West Province.

According to Karo Resources Chairperson, Mr Loucas Pouralis, the complex will have a mine smelter, a refinery and a 300-megawatt solar power station, and the investment will create 15 000 direct and 75 000 indirect jobs and leave a permanent mark in Zimbabwe.

Speaking during the ceremony, President Mnangagwa said the mining sector is key for the Zimbabwean economy, being the main contributor to the GDP, hence the importance of this investment for economic transformation.

"This project comes after I commissioned other major projects for the country such as the Eureka Mine in Mashonaland Central Province and Shabanie Mashava Mine. I have also done the groundbreaking of the Hwange Extension power project, the Beitbridge border post and the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport upgrade. This is one of many mining projects that will transform the Zimbabwean economy. 15 000 direct jobs will be created at this site alone," he said.

The President also said this project should have been completed long back, adding that his administration has cut short the bureaucracy that was stopping it from taking off.




"This investment falls in the Great Dyke, which is endowed with various minerals including platinum which have not been fully exploited due to colonialism. Much of it [Great Dyke] was in the hands of Anglo American handlers and it took time to wrestle some of the claims from those who owned them before. Resources belong to the people of Zimbabwe. No mortal should stand in the way of beneficiation of the resources to benefit its rightful owners," he said.

Mnangagwa urged the people in the mining industry to employ sustainable mining methods, while calling for investors to ensure that such projects benefit the communities around them.

The Minister of Mines and Mining Resources, Winston Chitando said with such investments coming into the country, Zimbabwe will never be the same again.

The country in the new dispensation has carried the Zimbabwe is open for business message across the globe in a bid to attract investment into the country.

Mnangagwa Karo Platinum
Source: zbc