Tavua Landowners Hail PM’s Vision
‘This fair share royalty payout would give 80 per cent to the landowners and 20 per cent to the Government’
Nasomo Village headman Viliame Rokoraibe said it was Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama’s foresight that ensured the people of Nasomo had resources to pass down to their future generation.
Mr Raibe made these comments on Friday after the handing over of the fair share of mineral royalty payout to the Nasomo Landowners Trust.
Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources Jone Usamate made the official handover at Nasomo Village, Vatukoula, Tavua, on Friday.
The payout is the result of the gold and silver mined from beneath Nasomo land for the period June to November 2021.
“We are thankful that the Prime Minister had determined in 2018 that this fair share royalty payout would give 80 per cent to the landowners and 20 per cent to the Government,” he said.
He said in the past, the bulk of this would go to government.
Village projects
He said each of the 123 landowners usually deduct a certain amount of money from their payout to contribute to the Nasomo Village projects and this allocation has increased significantly.
“As of now, we have $80,000 so we have agreed that from this year we will keep saving this money for five years and that is why I am grateful to the Government for looking after its people,” he said.
The Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources Jone Usamate confirmed that from 2018 to date, mineral royalty fair share of approximately $1.08 million was paid to the Nasomo Landowners Trust.
“During my visit to the mine last month, I was briefed that the mine had undertaken significant capital investments to modernise the mine infrastructure, improve underground working conditions, ensure cost-effective power generation and improve its gold recovery or milling process,” he said.
He said given the capital-intensive and volatile nature of mining, the support of relevant stakeholders including landowners is integral in the success of such projects.
“As such, I encourage all of the Nasomo Landowners Trust and the wider Vatukoula and Tavua mining community to continue to support Vatukoula Gold Mines in its efforts to secure the future of mining in Vatukoula,” he said.
The payout was $196,564.73.