MINING companies, among other business entities in Zambia, have a significant opportunity and role to contribute to the well-being of local communities, including peasant farmers. Supporting these farmers can create long-term, mutually beneficial relationships between the mining sector and local communities.
In contemporary times, consumers, investors and the broader public expect businesses to contribute positively to society.
Mining companies can enhance their public image and build goodwill among local communities and stakeholders by supporting peasant farmers.
It is indisputable that mining operations sometimes face opposition from local communities due to environmental and social concerns. By investing in local farmers, mining companies can demonstrate their commitment to sustainable development, which helps maintain their social licence to operate and inspires confidence among local people.
Mining operations are often concentrated in specific areas, which can lead to overdependence on mining revenues as the case has been in the Copperbelt Province, where local communities are heavily dependent on mining.
Mining firms can therefore help diversify the local economy and reduce the risk of economic instability if mineral prices fluctuate or if mining operations are shut down or scaled back by empowering local farmers.
Peasant farmers often depend on small-scale agriculture, which can be highly vulnerable to changing weather patterns and pests like fall armyworms, among other challenges. Mining companies can help small-scale farmers build more sustainable livelihoods which are solely not dependent on mining by supporting farmers in different ways.
We therefore welcome and
applaud deliberate efforts in this vein by Luanshya Copper Mine (LCM) to provide fertiliser and seed to several farmers along Nkulumashiba stream and other farming areas in Luanshya who have also benefited from water being pumped out from Shaft 28 mine, which President Hakainde Hichilema unlocked in May this year.
The deliberate move by LCM to provide farm inputs such as vegetable seed and fertilisers to enable the farmers to diversify as espoused by the New Dawn administration is commendable and should be emulated by other business entities.
Over 28 million cubic metres out of the 170 million cubic metres of water which accumulated at Shaft 28 for over 20 years has been pumped out since May this year and it is heart-warming that this water has been benefiting farmers downstream Nkulumashiba.
LCM chairman and chief executive officer Wang Jingjun says the water from Shaft 28 has significantly benefited farmers along Nkulumashiba stream who were given farm inputs by the mining firm.
It is gratifying that Mr Wang has assured the farmers of LCM’s support during the dewatering period to benefit from the water being pumped out of the shaft.
This help is envisaged to improve food security and the economic resilience of local communities and we therefore urge local farmers to leverage and take advantage of this shot in the arm to produce food for their respective households and sell the surplus.
Mining companies in Zambia have a unique opportunity to create positive social, economic, and environmental impacts by supporting peasant farmers in the communities they operate.
Beyond being a moral or ethical imperative, such support can strengthen the long-term viability of mining projects, build stronger community ties and contribute to the broader development of the country.
In a rapidly changing world, where sustainability and social responsibility are increasingly important, these types of partnerships can provide lasting benefits to all involved.
Mining firms should support diversification
MINING companies, among other business entities in Zambia, have a significant opportunity and role to contribute to the well-being of local communities, including peasant farmers. Supporting these farmers can create long-term, mutually beneficial relationships between the mining sector and local communities.
In contemporary times, consumers, investors and the broader public expect businesses to contribute positively to society.
Mining companies can enhance their public image and build goodwill among local communities and stakeholders by supporting peasant farmers.
It is indisputable that mining operations sometimes face opposition from local communities due to environmental and social concerns. By investing in local farmers, mining companies can demonstrate their commitment to sustainable development, which helps maintain their social licence to operate and inspires confidence among local people.
Mining operations are often concentrated in specific areas, which can lead to overdependence on mining revenues as the case has been in the Copperbelt Province, where local communities are heavily dependent on mining.
Mining firms can therefore help diversify the local economy and reduce the risk of economic instability if mineral prices fluctuate or if mining operations are shut down or scaled back by empowering local farmers.
Peasant farmers often depend on small-scale agriculture, which can be highly vulnerable to changing weather patterns and pests like fall armyworms, among other challenges. Mining companies can help small-scale farmers build more sustainable livelihoods which are solely not dependent on mining by supporting farmers in different ways.
We therefore welcome and
applaud deliberate efforts in this vein by Luanshya Copper Mine (LCM) to provide fertiliser and seed to several farmers along Nkulumashiba stream and other farming areas in Luanshya who have also benefited from water being pumped out from Shaft 28 mine, which President Hakainde Hichilema unlocked in May this year.
The deliberate move by LCM to provide farm inputs such as vegetable seed and fertilisers to enable the farmers to diversify as espoused by the New Dawn administration is commendable and should be emulated by other business entities.
Over 28 million cubic metres out of the 170 million cubic metres of water which accumulated at Shaft 28 for over 20 years has been pumped out since May this year and it is heart-warming that this water has been benefiting farmers downstream Nkulumashiba.
LCM chairman and chief executive officer Wang Jingjun says the water from Shaft 28 has significantly benefited farmers along Nkulumashiba stream who were given farm inputs by the mining firm.
It is gratifying that Mr Wang has assured the farmers of LCM’s support during the dewatering period to benefit from the water being pumped out of the shaft.
This help is envisaged to improve food security and the economic resilience of local communities and we therefore urge local farmers to leverage and take advantage of this shot in the arm to produce food for their respective households and sell the surplus.
Mining companies in Zambia have a unique opportunity to create positive social, economic, and environmental impacts by supporting peasant farmers in the communities they operate.
Beyond being a moral or ethical imperative, such support can strengthen the long-term viability of mining projects, build stronger community ties and contribute to the broader development of the country.
In a rapidly changing world, where sustainability and social responsibility are increasingly important, these types of partnerships can provide lasting benefits to all involved.