The Sunday News
AT a time when Zimbabwe is faced with the scourge of idle youths that are engaged in drug and alcohol abuse, giant platinum company, the Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Private) Limited (Zimplats) has found a sustainable way of integrating enterprising youths into the mainstream of the country’s economy through its Local Enterprise Development (LED) programme.
The LED programme has triggered a quiet but effective revolution, which is taking place in Mhondoro-Ngezi — a mining and farming area about 60 kilometres (km) west of Harare — where youths who are part of the programme are blazing a trail. Our news crew’s attention was particularly drawn to two youth-led companies that have grown their staff complement from zero to nearly 200, thanks to the support they are getting from Zimplats.
Zimplats
The two firms, Combined Technical Services (CTS) and Static-Strata Engineering (SSE) were integrated into Zimplats’ supply chain a few years ago, and have never disappointed. For example, CTS has amassed the capability of providing customised engineering solutions that meet the client’s specific needs, starting from the development of concepts in line with the requirements, specifications and documentations, execution and management of projects though to supply, delivering and commissioning, as well as provision of ongoing support and plant maintenance services.
CTS also reconditions heavy duty mining trucks and earth movers and constructs structures used to support cages that take miners underground as well as structures that support ventilation underground.
The other youth-led enterprise, SSE is providing support to all the Zimplats underground mines, which is basically the physical structural support needed at their mines in Mhondoro-Ngezi. Through these shining examples, the LED programme is proving to all-and-sundry that youths are equally capable of chasing their dreams and breaking into the big league with the right kind of support — from the provision of concessional funding, to the technical and commercial support.
Zimbabwe is an extremely young country with 62 percent of its population below the age of 25.
According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNPF), young people can realise their full potential and contribute to economic and social transformation if empowered with knowledge and skills to protect themselves from vices and make informed decisions. And yet many of the world’s youth population, including here in Zimbabwe, are falling prey to challenges faced by adolescents such as teenage pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV and Aids, unsafe abortions, child marriages, and lack of access to sexual and reproductive health information services.
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
One of the ways through which the youths could lay a firm foundation for themselves is when they become active participants in meaningful economic activities. Through the LED programme, Zimplats has been able to encourage youth participation in mainstream economic activities, and connecting them to the resources for better employment and a higher quality of life in response to challenges of globalisation and the drive for de-centralisation. The projects are an archetypal example of how corporates can galvanise youths to take up the productive spaces and shun vices like drug and alcohol abuse that have swallowed the potential of many young people. They are also fit to be seen as a convincing example of how corporates can align with national strategies, in this case the Second Republic’s rural industrialisation agenda, import substitution, infrastructure development and jobs creation.
Combined Technical Services, CTS are already looking into ways in which they can increase their capacity in the wake of the life-changing support from Zimplats. Speaking during a tour at their workshop in Mhondoro-Ngezi, CTS managing director, Mr Leslie Chiremba, said the level of business they are receiving from Zimplats alone is in itself a huge capital investment.
“As youths, we are so delighted with the gesture we got from Zimplats. For this business to flourish, it was because of them; they supported us immensely by giving us huge capital investment and enabled us, as a company, to grow,” he said.
“By having their vehicles reconditioned by us, Zimplats are delaying the importation of new machinery by an extra two to three years, which amounts to significant savings of foreign currency. The production centre is therefore an import substitution facility that has reduced turnaround times through manufacturing, repairing and reconditioning of LHD components, engines, axles, gear boxes and all rotable spares”, he added.
Other big mines have since taken Zimplats’ cue and are sending their equipment from all corners of the country to Mhondoro-Ngezi. As a result, Mr Chiremba said they are setting sights on expansion and gaining a more national footprint.
“The company’s future plans are to expand our workshop space from 3 000sqm to 5 000sqm in the next five years, and interestingly we are going regional by entering the Democratic Republic of Congo market in the second quarter of 2023, where we are set to open a workshop that offers similar services as the Ngezi workshop”, said Mr Chiremba.
CTS has a procurement office in North America, whose purpose is to source spares for Trackless Mining Machines (TMM) spares. Combined Technical Services employs 43 people who include diesel plant fitters, welders, boilermakers, fitter and turners and auto electricians.
Static-Strata Engineering On the other hand, SSE now has a workforce of 150 employees up from 34 before joining the LED programme. Theirs is to ensure that Zimplats’ underground mine shafts are in good condition. It specialises in diverse rock engineering and mining support activities.
“As a company, we are so delighted by the way Zimplats helped us in our business endeavours. They gave us grants and ensured that we have guaranteed market for our services, as we constantly service their underground mine shaft. Static-Strata is endowed with a diverse wealth of skills from a team of young professionals in the mining industry,” said the company’s managing director Mr Tawanda Gwasira, as he showered praises on Zimplats for giving them an opportunity to flourish.
“Our partners would be proud to be associated with Static-Strata, as we are geared to providing quality, cost-effective and strong shotcrete products to the mining and construction industry from our innovative process-oriented approach through our dedicated young professionals. Our service starts long before the spraying begins spanning from project specification, mix design and material-handling logistics,” he added.
The highly technical process which requires specialist material is a regular process, meaning the company will get repeat business.
“Shotcrete support is a quick, effective method applying cement, sand and fine aggregate concretes which are applied pneumatically and compacted dynamically under high velocity in underground mining using specialised equipment. Our company offers different shotcreting services to both civil construction projects and mining projects. In mining projects, we offer the following services: Portal entrance and box cut shotcreting. The company carries out shotcrete on portal entrances to stabilise the loosely consolidated strata on both high walls and low walls as well as on shaft collars. Ramps and Haulage way shotcreting. We provide shotcreting to permanent excavations so as to guarantee long term stability and easier rock condition monitoring,” he said.
Zimplats took the deliberate decision to empower small companies within their vicinity to ensure that more companies of significant scale are born in Mhondoro-Ngezi, with the hope of turning it into a self-contained economic zone. Zimplats’ Head of Corporate Affairs, Mrs Busi Chindove, said it is apparent that LED companies will be given a more central role in regional integration efforts and also throughout the development process since they’re a crucial element in the development of the country.
She also said LEDs’ main contribution is the absorption of productive resources at all levels of the economy. The inter-linkages they create in the economy also adds to the formation of flexible economic systems in which small and large firms are intertwined, creating good opportunities for the attraction of foreign investment.
“LED companies are pathfinders in the market and by their nature usually do well in this aspect. Their operations are normally supply/demand driven and they understand the market well. On the contribution which small businesses make to the national economy and wealth creation is being recognised by the Government and must be considered as part and parcel of the economic development process,” she said.
