President Cyril Ramaphosa is to be applauded for expressing determination to remove all impediments in the way of the sustained growth of the South African mining industry. For South Africa, mining continues to be an essential part of the economy. Mining last year generated a record R1.18-trillion, in spite of being forced to cope with energy and logistics snarl-ups.
Although the trillion rand-plus looks good, South African mining is far from realising its full potential – and it is important that the President has noted that. In addition to the energy crisis and problems with port and rail operations, the outlook for the year ahead has been dampened by concerns about security, illegal mining, and the pace of structural reform.
South Africans must collaborate to achieve a secure supply of electricity, accelerate economic reforms to improve the operating environment, tackle illegal mining and damage to infrastructure, and improve the regulatory environment.