Malawi’s government has
commissioned the country’s first uranium project, an effort that is expected to
boost the economy. The mine will be located in the northern district of
Karonga. The approval of the Kayerekera Uranium Project came after critics
withdrew their court injunction against it. Voice of America English to Africa
Service’s Lameck Masina reports on its expected benefits.
Economists say the ten-year
project is expected to boost Malawi’s foreign exchange earnings by 20%. It’s
set to begin in December and will be managed by the Australian mining company
Paladin Africa Limited.
Prominent economist Goodall Gondwe is Malawi’s minister of
finance. He says the project is expected to contribute greatly to annual export
earnings, “You [we] are looking at more than 40% addition to our export now.
This is huge. It means [if] this project is successful, we will in fact pass
the one billion US dollar mark in exports and the impact of that on the economy is
enormous.”
Until now, tobacco has been Malawi’s main export, contributing most of the country’s foreign exchange earnings. The new mine may change that, producing an expected 100 tons of uranium every year.
But civil society organizations opposed the government’s decision to grant a license
to Paladin Africa Limited. They
said the company had not addressed possible environmental and health problems.
They said gas released from the mines could cause a number
of illnesses, including cancer, kidney infection and brain damage. They also
expressed concern over the wastewater from the mines.
But the government said Paladin had met all legal
requirements and all the environmental issues had been dealt with. Unconvinced,
the NGOs obtained a court injunction to prevent the government from approving
the project. The case was settled out of court amid allegations from other
civil society groups that their representatives accepted kickbacks to back
down.
Undule Mwakasungura is the executive director of the Centre
for Human Rights and Rehabilitation, one of the NGOs that strongly opposed the
project. He explains the change of heart, “The discussions have been very
honest, very honorable and I believe that it is important that at a certain
point decisions should be made for the interest of the country. And this is
what we made. The issue of motivating us with money was not there. Whether we
are corrupt or not, it’s up to the people of Karonga to judge us. But I believe
we have made a better decision for the interest of this country.”
Mwakasungura says both the government and Paladin have agreed
to address all the concerns raised by the civil society organizations.
John Borshoff is the managing director of Paladin. He says
his company will adhere to the terms of the out-of-court settlement. They
include the establishment of a new NGO, which will be part of a broader
monitoring group that will keep an eye on the environmental and health impact
of Paladin’s
mining operations.
The company has also amended its social responsibility
program, which now includes the allocation of $8 million towards upgrading the
water supply for the surrounding communities.
Only five countries in the world produce and export uranium
-- Canada, Australia, Kazakhstan, Namibia and Russia. If the Kayerekera Uranium
Project succeeds, Malawi will join them.