Following the July 2021 closure of its Buzwagi gold mine in Tanzania, and in line with its mine closure objective of leaving a positive legacy, gold and copper major Barrick opened a training academy using the facilities at the closed mine in an effort to ensure the region continues to be benefit, post mining.

Barrick’s concept for the academy involves it offering custom-designed training programmes aimed at developing the company’s frontline managers to grow both as individuals and as leaders in their fields, while also equipping them with the skills to manage their teams more effectively and to improve performance.

In this vein, the academy will be training more than 2 000 forepersons, supervisors and superintendents from the Africa and Middle East region over the next 24 months.

“The Barrick Academy reflects our broader commitment to a positive legacy by investing in people before, during and beyond the life-of-mine,” Barrick Africa and Middle East COO Sebastiaan Bock tells Mining Weekly.

In time, he says the academy has the potential to expand beyond Barrick’s workforce, with the aim of serving as a “regional development engine” that aligns with the company’s commitment to sustainability, partnership and enduring value.

How Barrick closes its mines is just as important to the company as how it builds and operates such assets, says Bock, adding that the Buzwagi mine was a significant economic powerhouse in the region for nearly 15 years before it poured its last gold in 2021.

“From our perspective, however, that is not the end of the story for Buzwagi as we transform it into an alternative productive asset that will serve the community for decades to come,” he adds.

This methodology is embedded in Barrick’s group-wide Closure Management Standard, which requires all sites to develop closure plans that address both environmental rehabilitation and socioeconomic transition from the outset.

Upon mine closure, Bock says Barrick started immediate mine closure works, including activities such as rehabilitating tailings storage facilities to globally recognised safety standards, dismantling the plant, investing in community livelihood projects and repurposing the mine site and some infrastructure into a special economic zone (SEZ).

The SEZ is aimed at providing the government and communities ongoing and sustainable economic activities through manufacturing and service industries.

“We believe that mine closure should be approached not as an end but as part of a responsible, long-term development process,” he explains.

Special Economic Zoning

As part of its focus on long term value creation, Barrick is working with Kahama Municipal Council to operationalise the SEZ by using the closed mine’s infrastructure to accommodate various industries, such as manufacturing, renewable energy, mining support services, logistics centres and education services.

The Buzwagi SEZ is well located as a thoroughfare for goods and services between Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A pre-feasibility study on the SEZ, conducted in 2021, highlighted that the establishment of an SEZ would catalyse the economic activities and growth in the region.

The study showed that the creation of the SEZ had the potential to replace the mine as the region’s economic driver and could sustainably create at least 3 000 jobs a year and generate revenue sources for government through a service levy and other forms of taxes.

To spur development at the SEZ, Barrick invested in a new airport terminal, with capacity for over 200 passengers, at the closed Buzwagi mine. This will enable the Kahama Airport to handle more scheduled airlines.

With the government of Tanzania gazetting and issuing a licence to endorse Barrick’s plans to redevelop the Buzwagi mining area into an SEZ, more than 11 investors have expressed interest in setting up manufacturing and processing industries inside this area, to date.

The interested investors include those with operations covering chemicals and reagents, minerals refining, quarrying, manufacturing and renewable energy.

Once operational, the SEZ will be operated by an independent and professional operator, working in tandem with the Kahama Municipal Council to ensure sustainability.