Presidents SONA speech today9 Feb 2024 18:41
'MINING
In Mining, we recognized early in my Administration that there
can be no wealth creation from our bounty of minerals without
organizing the sector to end decades of exploitation and
negligence. Ever since I announced the reforms I was going to
effect in this sector three years ago, we have faced resistance,
roadblocks, and rebellion. But we have prevailed. I am therefore
happy to report, Madam Speaker, that during the year gone by,
we have set up the institutional framework for bringing sanity to
and creating wealth from our Mining sector. First, we repealed
the Mines and Minerals Act and replaced it with a new one so
that the law protects the interests of Malawians in all mining
activities. Second, we have developed the organizational
structure for a Mining Regulatory Authority that we will begin
building once the new Act has been duly gazetted. Third, we
established a National Mining Company that belongs to the
Malawian people, with a mandate to catalyse private sector
development, encourage joint ventures, act as a state equity
partner, undertake in-depth exploration, and most importantly,
maximize revenue generation and social benefits to Malawians.
Fourth, we have created the Malawi Development Cooperation
Holdings Limited, through which Malawi will safeguard its
interests in its national treasures, and the new Mining Company
has been incorporated as a subsidiary of this larger
conglomerate.
Madam Speaker, at the same time that we have been
reorganizing the Mining sector, we have been reviewing the
existing mining agreements themselves, because some of the
deals that have been negotiated in the past show a lack of
seriousness. As a result of this effort, my Administration has
successfully negotiated and signed a Mining Development
Agreement for the mining of niobium at Kanyika in Mzimba
district, and we are in the course of renegotiating other MDAs,
including those with Lotus Resources Limited for the Kayerekera
Mine, and Mkango Resources Limited for Rare Earth Project at
Songwe Hill in Phalombe. Malawians may also wish to know that
an investor is all set to start mining works at Kangankunde Hill,
which is estimated to have 261 million Tonnes of rare earth worth
billions and billions of Dollars.
Madam Speaker, my progress report on wealth creation efforts
in mining would not be complete if I omitted the progress on the
Kasiya Rutile Project. As I speak, Sovereign Metals Limited and
Rio Tinto have entered into a partnership, and now the project is
undergoing a Definitive Feasibility Study and an Environmental
and Social Impact Assessment, which mark a crucial step in
advancing the Kasiya Rutile-Graphite Project in Malawi. When
all these operations begin to yield a harvest, it will be a game
changer for Malawi not only economically, but also geopolitically,
for we have every reason to expect that we will become less
dependent on outsiders
Sign In
Follow the stocks
