Cabinet has approved a raft of interventions to curb rampant illegal mining in Bindura Municipality and Bindura Rural District Council after an assessment revealed widespread environmental degradation, destruction of public infrastructure and growing public health concerns.
The report, presented by the Minister of Local Government and Public Works, Daniel Garwe, found that illegal and unregulated mining activities have expanded into residential areas, public infrastructure corridors and land reserved for future urban development due to inadequate planning and weak inter-agency coordination.
According to Cabinet, the illegal mining activities have damaged road and railway infrastructure, polluted water sources and contributed to an increase in diseases such as silicosis and tuberculosis. The report also links the mining activities to rising cases of drug and substance abuse as well as sexually transmitted infections in affected communities.
In response, the Cabinet resolved to adopt a whole-of-government approach to tackle the problem by establishing a national task force to coordinate enforcement efforts across relevant ministries and agencies.
The government will also review existing penalties and fines to make them more punitive while strengthening enforcement measures to deter illegal mining and protect public infrastructure, the environment and communities.
The intervention comes as authorities intensify efforts to address the growing impact of illegal mining, which has become a major challenge in several parts of the country.
