Initiative to revive mining sector
Minister of Science and Technology Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane will this week launch a mining initiative aimed at reviving South Africa’s flagging mining sector.
The Mandela Mining Precinct will be launched on Friday at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Johannesburg.
“The Mandela Mining Precinct aims to support local innovations to provide solutions to the challenges faced by the mining industry in South Africa. Other issues to be addressed by this precinct include the health and safety of mineworkers,” the Department of Science and Technology said in a statement on Monday.
The department said the institution, named after the world icon and former President Nelson Mandela, will help to position mining as a core driver of world-class technological and manufacturing capabilities and solutions for the development of the economy.
“The event will also see the launch of the Mining Equipment Manufacturers of South Africa (MEMSA), an equipment-focused organisation to position South Africa’s mining capital goods manufacturers as world-class competitive, innovative, dynamic and transformative,” the department said.
An exhibition will be held to showcase some of the equipment. In addition, SiMINE, specializing in the future of mining, will also demonstrate some of its technology, which includes drones and robotics.
The Mining Precinct is a collaboration between the department, through its entity the CSIR, the Chamber of Mines and the Universities of Johannesburg, Pretoria and Witwatersrand.
Minister Kubayi-Ngubane will be joined by the Ministers of Mineral Resources Gwede Mantashe, Trade and Industry Rob Davies and Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Nkosazana-Dlamini Zuma.