* Minister Zikhale Ng’oma visits Kayelekera Uranium Mine to appreciate progress where he assured all information relating to mining industry is readily available and things are done in a transparent manner
* Mining sector is a vital engine for the country’s economic recovery and growth — Zikhale Ng’oma
By George Mponda, MANA & edited by Duncan Mlanjira, Maravi Express
The Ministry of Mining seems to be adhering to the directive that President Lazarus Chakwera made on April 28 that the authorities in the industry should not to operate in secret with foreign mining companies as Minister Ken Zikhale Ng’oma visits Kayelekera Uranium Mine to appreciate progress towards full production operations expected to start between July to September.
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The Minister — while promising to support operations of mining companies by getting rid of bottlenecks which have the potential to reduce earnings from the industry — he also assured that the “Government will also ensure that all information relating to the mining industry is readily available and things are done in a transparent manner”.
Zikhale Ng’oma described the mining sector as a vital engine for the country’s economic recovery and growth and expressed his shock at the investment which Lotus Africa Limited has at the mine in Karonga, saying: “The investment here should be making money which could have benefited our country a lot.”
He was accompanied by Paramount Chief Kyungu, who called on the operators, Lotus Africa Limited, to ensure that Malawians benefit meaningfully from the natural resources extracted in their country.
“Previous operators gave Malawians a raw deal during their time managing the mine,” he said. “As custodians of the land, we want to see real change this time, and our people deserve better jobs, infrastructure, and a clean environment.
“We cannot continue to be spectators while others benefit from our resources,” said the Paramount Chief Kyungu of Karonga and Chitipa.
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On his part, Managing Director for Lotus Africa Ltd corporate department, Gregg Bittar, said the mine will deliver for the people of Malawi: “Government is an important economic partner with a significant interest in the project.
“Through the Community Development Agreement, we will make sure that not only does Karonga and Chitipa benefit but the whole country,” Bittar said.
Minister’s delegation listening to Bittar’s briefing of the mine
Lotus Africa Limited took over operations of Kayelekera Uranium Mine from Paladin Limited after it went into care and maintenance in 2014 due to falling uranium prices.
Having noticed some raw deal undertaken by Paladin Limited, stakeholders — including ActionAid Malawi in 2015; https://www.maraviexpress.com/lotus-resources-strong-tax-breaks-on-kayelekera-mine-deal-defy-advice-against-such-incentives-made-by-actionaid-malawi-in-2015-on-former-investor-paladin-africa/ were voicing their concerns over weak mining development agreements that the Malawi government had been signing with foreign companies.
This led to President Chakwera to admit that the Ministry of Mining was operating in secret with the foreign investors — a statement he made at the official opening of the Malawi Mining Investment Forum 2025 under the theme; ‘Advancing Malawi’s mining agenda in an evolving global industry’.
Chakwera said “it is not acceptable” that the citizenry should learn of mining operations hearing about mining operations taking place right here in Malawi “from a press conference by a foreign company in Australia”.
“Or from that company’s report of the performance of its stock on the London Stock Exchange, as if here in Malawi the Ministry of Mining has no information to give Malawians about how Government is securing a prosperous future for them through this resource.
“So I am ordering that the silence from the Ministry regarding the activities in the mining sector needs to end immediately, because our minerals are a matter of national security and there is no better security than putting things in the light.
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“The job of the Ministry is to ensure that there are functional systems working around the clock to regulate the conduct of every player in the sector and to safeguard every single ounce of our minerals.”
The President also took cognizance that officials of the Mining Ministry are always galavanting around the world attending mining conferences and indabas, saying that is not their primary job “but ensuring that [Malawi’s] regulatory framework for the mining sector is being enforced with diligence and discipline, which requires great levels of vigilance and meticulous attention”.
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