The Ministry of Natural Resources yesterday launched its Mining Safety Seminar under the theme
‘Putting Safety First in Mining: charting a course to cultivate compliance and strengthen enforcement.’
According to a press release from the Ministry of Natural Resources, the seminar focuses on “innovative and time tested ways and modern mechanisms to improve the health and safety practices within the sector.”
Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman stated that over the past two years, 31 miners lost their lives due to mining pits collapsing. The profile of these miners is generally a young, inexperienced and eager patriot who feels that there aren’t enough opportunities in the city and turns to the “bush” to define his manhood and become a “self-sufficient and contributing member of society.”
Trotman continued that this creates an industry which is mostly “hinged on a desperation to succeed” and this leads to recklessness. This, he says, added to an “acute ignorance of the basic aspects of engineering and physics behind the construction of safe mines” inevitably leads to accidents where the main cause is negligence.
According to the release, solving this problem would involve a collective approach to properly educated miners and become au fait with the best practices that exist.
“[Action] must, by necessity, include a refined Government policy, enhanced regulation, monitoring and enforcement by GGMC, and improved education techniques supported by our technical institutes, University, and by the companies that profit from the sale of excavators, ATVs and mining equipment,” Trotman said.
