Malawi govt to present reviewed Mines and Mineral Bill to Parliament in September

Government through Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mines said it will present to Cabinet and eventually in September to the National Assembly the final draft of Mines and Minerals Bill for enactment.

Speaking during the National Consultative Meeting on the Draft Bill held in Lilongwe on Tuesday, Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Mines, Bright Msaka, said Malawi needs a piece of legislation that is comprehensive, meets international standards, that makes mining profitable and benefit Malawians among others.

“In order for the mining industry to make the expected contributions to the country’s economic growth, there is need for concerted, consistent and steadfast efforts towards promotion of sustainable mining. This will be possible if we develop a sound and comprehensive mining legislation,” he said.

He added that the legislation should take into account the prevailing international best practices, attract investment and enable Malawians to derive optimum benefits from the industry.

The new Mines and Minerals Bill will replace the 1981 long overdue law.

The new law proposes the creation of a Mineral Resources Committee that will ensure transparent and efficient issuance and administration of mineral tenements,  promotes local community engagement between the license holder and the communities in the vicinity to the tenement.

The bill will shift the collection of mineral royalty from the Ministry to Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) in a bid to promote efficiency in mineral revenue collection and also provides for exploration companies to apply for a retention license when some economic and technical factors does not permit the development of a mine where exploration has been done.

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