Photo: The Herald (File photo).
Former diamond
mining firms which operated in Chiadzwa before the consolidation
exercise by government last year destroyed close to 100 000 hectares of
land, an executive has said.
The companies which
include Anjin Investments, Mbada Diamonds, Jinan, Diamond Mining
Company, Kusena and Marange Resources operated in Marange before they
were kicked out by
President Robert Mugabe administration for failing to
account for revenue collected and for gems mined.
Close to $15 billion worth of gems disappeared from Marange diamond fields, according to President Mugabe.
Zimbabwe
Consolidation Diamond Company (ZCDC) Chief Executive Officer, Morris
Mpofu, said the company inherited the problem after the amalgamation and
have set aside close to $20 million for land reclamation exercise.
"The companies left
large tracts of land with gullies, uprooted trees and potholes as they
focused on alluvial mining and we have set aside $20 million for the
exercise," said Mpofu while addressing delegates in Vumba.
He said they have started working on 20 hectares with close to 900 trees planted so far.
"We are expecting
to plant close to 2 000 trees by March this year. We are working with
the Forestry Commission of Zimbabwe in this exercise," said Mpofu.
He said the reclamation exercise will enable villagers to use the land for other purposes.
Recently, villages
expressed concern over the land degradation, accusing the companies of
siphoning resources from their communities with ploughing back.
No comments :
Post a Comment