Trade advocacy group calls for involvement of communities in mining value chain

Centre for Trade Policy and Development (CTPD) says there is a need to take account of a provision for Community Development Agreements (CDAs) in the Minerals Regulation Commission (MRC) Bill.

In a statement on Thursday, CTPD Legal Researcher Lucy Musonda said there was a need to ensure the community’s interests and rights were protected through legislative measures.

Given that Zambia’s economy heavily relied on the mining sector and that communities in mining areas are significantly affected by mining activities, Musonda felt it was essential to ensure their interests and rights were protected through legislative measures.

“The inclusion of CDAs in the MRC Bill will align with the government’s commitment stipulated in the 8th National Development Plan (8NDP),” she said.

Musonda said the 8NDP aimed to promote a good governance environment to overcome socio-economic challenges and attain Vision 2030.

She said this involved respect for human rights, transparency, accountability, increased participation, democratic processes and access to justice, rule of law and upholding national values and principles.

She added that good governance was an important precursor for transforming the economy, sustaining economic growth and safeguarding lives and livelihoods of local communities.

Thus, she said for affected communities to adequately benefit from the mining projects, the government should obligate mining license holders to develop and implement CDAs with such communities.

Musonda said this had been observed as a progressive approach that some African countries like Uganda had adopted.

“CTPD understands that the mining companies do respond to corporate social responsibility (CSR),” she said.

Musonda, nevertheless said those were not sufficient because they were not a legally binding mechanism for accountability and did not adequately recognise community participation.

She argued that CDAs were an essential tool for developing and maintaining positive company-community relationships.

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