Mining loses ground in Zambia
Higher copper prices have failed to stop layoffs at Zambian mines, and an accident in which small-scale miners were killed at a dump site has turned attention to government’s failure to address unemployment
Zambia had its worst mining disaster in three years when its biggest copper and cobalt slag dump site collapsed, killing 11 people last week. Many others, who were working for small-scale mining companies at the Black Mountain site in Kitwe, in the Copperbelt province, were severely injured. The incident happened a week after mining minister Richard Musukwa assured the nation that the site was not dangerous and that its operations were supervised by his ministry’s safety department. Miners who call themselves "Jerabos" have been operating at the site without the right skills. They are typically untrained and not qualified to exploit any resource from the dump site. There is also no electricity at the site, though operations go on well into the night regardless. But government ignored all the warning signs. Black Mountain was considered a disaster waiting to happen, and these fears worsened in May, when a blast endangered the lives of people in nearby communities, causing extensive d...
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