Initiate policies for geological survey - expert

By PRINCE CHIBAWAH

AN expert from Geological Survey of Denmark (GEUS) has implored the Zambian Government to initiate deliberate policies to support geological survey services in the mining sector.

GEUS development projects director, Dr. John Tychsen said the move would enable the expansion of Zambia's mining industry.

Dr Tychsen said investing in geological surveys also played a critical role towards the growth of Artisanal & Small Scale Mining (ASM).

In an interview with Daily Nation, Dr. Tychsen, who is the leader of the PanAfGeo WP3 project, was in Lusaka to facilitate a seminar which was held at Southern Sun hotel to, among other things, discuss ways forward for managing and assisting the ASM operators in Zambia.

"This year we are focusing on small-scale mining. What we have observed in Zambia and Africa in general is that national geological surveys are not involved in the small-scale mining system,

“So what we are trying to do here is to motivate, and discuss with the national geological survey on what they can do to help the smallscale miner. We are trying to change the mindset," he said.

He explained that several ASM operators were struggling to expand their businesses due to limited funding opportunities.

“Many small-scale miners are lacking finance. If a miner goes to the bank to obtain an investment loan, the bank will ask for some security. So what the geological survey could do is to go to the miner and do the mapping of his area,

“They would then estimate the amount of resources needed. It could be gold or copper, like the case in Zambia, and then make a report which the miner can take to the bank,” he said

That way the chances of getting a loan would be high because the bank would have some security.