The women say they have largely been unable to operationalise their mining claims due to lack of seed capital.

Trymore Tagwirei

Women miners in Mberengwa have appealed for alternative sources of financial support to enable them to develop their operations and meaningfully participate in the district’s mining sector.

The miners said they lacked the collateral security demanded by mainstream lenders for prospective borrowers to be considered.

They cited the Zimbabwe Women’ Microfinance Bank (ZWMB), which was formed ostensibly to empower women through financial inclusion and to strengthen mechanisms for their participation in various empowerment programmes, as beyond their reach.

Mberengwa is rich in minerals like gold, lithium, and chrome but the involvement of women in exploiting them is minimal.

Mberengwa Women in Mining Organization (MWMO) says it holds several mining blocks that lack optimal exploitation due to financial constraints.

“We organized ourselves as women and registered some gold and chrome claims but we lack capacity to fully make them productive. A lot of money is required but nobody is available to assist,” said the group’s leader Letwin Mutavu.

She said government should initiate new ways of funding organized women who lack collateral security to qualify for bank financing.

“We need money to pump out the water from flooded mines and to purchase mining equipment and explosives. It’s almost impossible to make money from mining without initial capital,” she said.

Mberengwa Miners Association (MBEMA) Chairperson Pelandava Mpofu said his group needed funding to develop members’ capacity to deal with safety and security issues particularly as they affected women-run mines.

“We need support to be able to strengthen risk and safety issues especially in mines that are run by women. We ask for affordable loans, not necessarily handouts,” said Mpofu.

Ward 37 Councilor Justin Mahombera said many women and young people with entrepreneurial zeal often fail before they started due to absence of customized support for them.

“They come to us for support in getting funding but there is very little that we can do for them except lobbying government and different organizations,” said Mahombera.

Nyasha Vheremu, a local woman with interest in gold mining, said women miners faced multiple challenges right from the point of prospecting for mining claims.

“We struggled to get mining claims, but now we have them. However, they are largely idle because we don’t have money to finance them. Women miners deserve their own dedicated support from government and NGOs,” said Vheremu.