Experts say foreign-owned mining firms profit abroad while South Africa loses jobs, steel production and energy security.
South Africa needs to take control of its minerals to grow the economy and create employment, says mining expert David van Wyk.
Almost all the country’s minerals are exported by the foreign-owned mining firms and the country does not use any of it, Van Wyk, a senior researcher for Benchmark Foundation, said.
“The truth is that South Africa produces a lot of minerals, but we don’t own them as the mining firms just pay tax and take them all to process and sell in the international market.
Experts urge SA to process its minerals locally
“The money they are making is huge as they sell the minerals in the international market,” said Van Wyk.
“The best coal is leaving the country and we are now running even our power stations with diesel, as we don’t keep it in SA.
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“Many things that we produce are in the hands of the private sector. South Africa is one of the best iron ore producers and largest exporters in the world, but we don’t use it to produce steel here at home. We have all the raw material used to produce steel, but we can’t.”
SA should emulate countries such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore that do not entirely depend on export. They are also encouraging consumers to buy local goods instead of imports, Van Wyk said.
Those countries are in control of their economies, making it easy for them to create jobs.
Boost jobs, industry and economic control
“If a government is in control of its economic policies, it decides what needs to be produced, when and how. But if it is not in control, that is impossible. We should try to emulate these countries.”
Bruce Williamson, a mining analyst, said the problem with industrialisation was that SA doesn’t have the mining skills, the innate entrepreneurial wherewithal, nor the funds to develop mines.
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“Bulk commodities need globally competitive services: road, rail, ports, power, water, communication networks and an educated, skilled population.”
