write an essay on the problems facing mining industry in africa(the first one who finishes helping me in this qn with the best essay will be marked brainliest by me,if your essay is inappropriate i will report you)
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Answer:
The current turbulence in the mining industry in South Africa has its roots in several different factors. First, the fall in global demand for platinum and other minerals due to recession; second, the consequences of the Marikana disaster in destabilising labour relations; and third, the structural character of our mining industry. A great deal has been written about the first two factors, so this article will examine the last factor, especially as the special features of mining cuts across the whole of mining and not just platinum.
Mining in South Africa has always been an enclave industry, albeit with substantial impact on the rest of the economy. In the main, minerals have been extracted from deep levels, subjected to some basic processing and then exported as ores without a great deal of beneficiation or fabrication. For instance we do not have substantial gold or diamond manufactured products capabilities despite having huge natural resources.
The gap between mining and manufacturing
The result of this restricted role of mining is a large gap between mining and manufacturing to the detriment of both sectors and to the national economy. Manufacturing has been subjected to extraordinarily high prices for raw material inputs such as steel, making our manufacturers uncompetitive internationally and even in the home market. The value chain and linkages so necessary for efficient and competitive production of finished goods have been seriously undermined. So has the flexibility of production needed to cope with shifts in global supply and demand, due to rigidities arising from the separation of the production of minerals and manufacturing.
This separation is strongly supported by the Chamber of Mines of South Africa, which argues that mining is driven by inherited comparative advantages, such as mineral deposits or natural beauty, while manufacturing depends on competitive advantages. They emphasise that a mineral resource endowment does not necessarily translate into manufacturing beneficiation. Furthermore, the mining industry should not be required to subsidise manufacturing beneficiation or to provide minerals below internationally determined prices.
In practice, this means that South African manufacturers have to pay import parity prices to the mining companies – i.e. the same price paid by overseas manufacturers – which ensures that our manufacturers are not competitive. When this difficulty is added to the problem posed by cheap manufactured goods from China and India, South African manufacturing operates on a very uneven playing field. Its only hope is to find niche markets where its specialised products may find space.
The isolation of mining from the total industrial value chain also has consequences for labour policy. Amplats is now proposing to displace 14,000 workers from mining into other activities. But what broad training have they been given to enable them to switch to other jobs, especially in manufacturing ? These workers have been confined to mines, so what skills could a rock driller bring to a production line in a factory?
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