A feature of the Chamber of Mines’ annual general meeting this week was a short documentary that told the stories of three people whose lives had been touched by mining. One was about the eldest daughter of a deceased mine worker and the five younger siblings she was able to bring up because they had found a way to access his retirement fund assets.
Another was about a former mine worker suffering from silicosis who, also belatedly, received compensation because the compensation office had tracked him down. And the third told the story of a mine worker who fell into unmanageable debt but who was assisted by his company to reduce his obligations.
In some cases, the mining industry has been a direct cause of illness and hardship. In others, it has been complicit in allowing a situation to continue unchecked. And in still others, its absence has simply been due to a lack of knowledge, engagement or even care.
But does that mean there is no good in mining? Absolutely not. We see its good in so many big and small ways every day. But because we see the good does not mean we must not see the bad.
And does this mean we cannot make good on the past? We can’t change the past, but the documentary shows how mining can make a difference even when it has not been solely responsible for a problem.
It takes courage to remove those rose-tinted glasses, hold up a mirror and reflect on what is and what might have been and what could be — and to engage and make things better.
That is the role the chamber has played in supporting companies in dealing with employee indebtedness, assisting pension funds in tracking pensioners and their families, helping to fix the compensation system for those who have fallen ill as a result of their jobs.
The three individuals in the documentary are among the many thousands whose lives will be better because the chamber has chosen to be a catalyst of change.
We know about mining’s part in SA’s predemocratic era. We know about mining’s effects since 2004. We must acknowledge the harm where it was done and build on the good. This would be a big step towards a future in which we mine minerals in ways that do not provoke opposition, scepticism or mistrust.
I refuse to accept that we cannot mine without doing harm to people, be they our employees or the communities around our mines. And if a negative event occurs, because errors do happen, then we must have in place structures, systems and processes that will enable justice to be done in a manner that properly fulfills our good intentions.
We have made significant strides towards meeting this overall goal, but we also need to acknowledge — to ourselves in the first instance and to our society as a whole — that we know we have a long, long way to go.
We cannot tackle this situation without significant economic growth, job creation and meaningful economic transformation. This is not something the mining industry or the business community can fix on its own
Most important, our industry has continued to push boundaries in the spheres of health and safety. The number of fatalities has continued to decline, injury rates are improving and incidence of occupational disease is falling too. All this is a consequence of deliberate and conscientious work in many areas and forums.
But despite the progress made, we have not done enough. Despite our determination, we are not yet doing enough to prevent fatalities, injuries and illness in all of the country’s mines. We are still not winning these battles.
Our employees still face the debilitating thought of not feeling confident that they will return home safely and healthily.
We also need to do more to minimise the negative effects — water, dust, noise and road traffic among others — on communities that live near our mining operations. And we need to engage openly and honestly with mine communities and their concerns, grievances and aspirations. We must learn from our mistakes and not repeat them.
There are those who have cottoned on to the phrase "radical economic transformation" and are seeking to use it in pursuit of narrow and naked commercial self-interest as they cling parasitically to those with political power. But the misuse of this term must not divert us from the huge amount of work left to be done in our industry and in the country at large to ensure higher and more inclusive economic growth.
More has been achieved than our toughest critics would like to acknowledge. In 1994, this industry had a pathetically small number of senior black and women technicians and managers. Today, the majority are black and/or female. There were no black mining entrepreneurs at all. Today well-known corporate names in our sector have emerged from a string of deals — African Rainbow Minerals, Exxaro, Royal Bafokeng Platinum and Kalagadi Minerals.
These are the real models of transformation, where ownership involves entrepreneurship rather than mere passive holdings.
We also need to get away from the mistaken idea that the other mining companies are hence "white-owned". Today, more than 50% of the industry is owned by millions of South Africans of all racial groups through pension funds and investments, including the Public Investment Corporation and the Industrial Development Corporation. The bulk of the remainder is owned by foreign pension and other asset management funds, on whose investment dollars we are dependent.
None of these companies is owned and controlled by the mining magnates of old who exist only in the minds of those who are trying to sell, for mischievous ends, the notion of white monopoly capital.
All of this makes the point and usefulness of the 26% target, which was conceptualised in a different era, questionable. We do need to be thinking more creatively about how our economy, and our industry in particular, can and should be transformed.
But this does not imply that the transformation imperative is becoming less urgent. On the contrary, the urgency has never been more acute.
For example, while more than half of designated positions in mining company workforces are now occupied by black people, it is still a long, long way from being representative of the country’s racial demographics. And much more needs to be done to make our still patriarchal industry a place where it is comfortable and safe for women to work. We must protect women in all our workplaces.
And much more can be said about some of the challenges related to relationships between mines and the communities where they are located. In the broader economy, the average black household earns substantially less and owns a great deal less than their white compatriots. Ultimately, this is the primary economic apartheid legacy that needs to be dealt with.
We cannot tackle this situation without significant economic growth, job creation and meaningful economic transformation. This is not something the mining industry or the business community can fix on its own. But we have a responsibility to contribute to the solution, along with a government operating with skill and integrity. Without a major effort by all of us, I fear for the future.
The events of the past year, including recent disclosures about undue pressure being placed on the Department of Mineral Resources leadership for nefarious ends, are matters of extreme concern. These come on top of the public protector’s report which examined a range of related issues.
If the allegations are proven to be true, SA’s reputation as an investment destination could be further damaged. It is crucial that ethical leadership and good governance are the foundations of our economy and society as a whole, without exception.
The chamber believes that further investigation into the matter is required and recommends that the president order a commission of inquiry into state capture to proceed at the earliest opportunity.
• Teke is the outgoing president of the Chamber of Mines. This was his address at the organisation’s annual general meeting this week.
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