‘Relocations: Minister takes ZCDC to task’ 6 June 2019

Manicaland Provincial Affairs Minister Dr Ellen Gwaradzimba has said the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC)  should implement a sustainable relocation model for families in Chimanimani where the State miner began operations last year. Dr Gwaradzimba said her office was concerned with the way villagers in Arda Transau had been relocated and said she would engage ZCDC to ensure a different model was used. Hundreds of families were relocated to the farm from Chiadzwa to pave way for mining activities.

The seven diamond mining companies licensed to mine diamonds in Chiadzwa then — Mbada Diamonds, Marange Resources, Anjin Investments, Diamond Mining Company (DMC), Jinan, Kusena and GyeNyame — operated as joint ventures with the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, when mining activities started in 2006. All diamond mining activities have since been consolidated under the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company.

Dr Gwaradzimba said relocation of people should be done in a sustainable manner to ensure that the livelihoods of the villagers were not disrupted. “One issue that I am concerned about is the issue of relocation of families in Chimanimani, she said. We need to come up with a model that will allow our people to become self-sustainable. They should not be moved from their communities and thrown in areas where they cannot continue fending for themselves and they are forced to survive on handouts.”… “When they build homes for these people, we want irrigation schemes, to enable the people to venture into horticulture, aqua-culture and other projects, she said. We want enough social amenities and roads, among others, to make the villages self-contained.”