EUREKA Gold Mine, which is owned by Dallaglio Investments, has shelled out US$485 000 to build homesteads for families earmarked for relocation in areas within its proximity, the Independent can reveal.
Dallaglio Investments is a subsidiary of Padenga Holdings.
The relocation exercise, which will see families being relocated from Kazunga and Mazhambe villages to Bome farm in Guruve Mashonaland Central, will pave the way for the miner to roll out its expansion activities.
Speaking during an event to commission 15 houses allocated to affected households last week, Mashonaland Central Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Chrisopher Magomo, said mining firms should “plough back” into their host communities.
“Indeed, host communities deserve sustainable assistance as part of the broader community development interventions by the industry and business community," he said.
“As far back as 1999, the previous owner of the Eureka Gold mine relocated 41 homesteads. In 2023, Eureka Gold mine embarked on a similar journey to relocate homesteads at Kazunga and Mazhambe villages to Bome farm to give way to the mine expansion programmes.
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"Eureka Gold mine has so far spent over US$485 000 on the construction of the 20 homesteads."
Apart from the houses, the relocated families will also receive farming inputs valued at about US$11 000.
The relocations, being undertaken in phases, will be completed in 2016.
Eureka Gold mine employs an estimated 1 200 workers.
The firm has also invested in drilling solarised boreholes for the community, donated blankets and sheets to Guruve district hospital and renovated Muroiwa primary school in the area.
Speaking during the same occasion, Eureka Gold mine human resources manager Tinago Tinago said the miner’s corporate social responsibility policy encompassed “community social development and economic empowerment, education, health, sanitation development and environmental management.”
“Eureka Gold mine endeavours that all its CSIR developmental initiatives should leave a sustainable and long-lasting legacy in the host communities, Mashonaland Central province and country at large. This will indeed be our social license for operating in our host communities.
“Eureka Gold mine will continue to prioritise the high impact projects that have capacity to transform the lives of our people in terms of economic empowerment, social and environmental fronts, as has been witnessed today, with the commissioning of modern rural homesteads, equipping of our hospital wards and provision of clean water through the solar powered boreholes scheme,” Tinago said.
Padenga Holdings revenue for the first half rose by 33% to US$99,2 million largely driven by strong performance in gold mining operations, including at Eureka Mine.