SEPA Empowers Women With Mining Skills In Male Dominated Industry

Save Environment and People Agency (SEPA), with support from Oxfam and the Ministry of Mines, has empowered women engaged in mining activities with technical knowhow and how to survive in the mining industry which for many years has been dominated by men.

SEPA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Malies Zulu Muke said in a statement that the training which was given to women focused on the environmental management, safety and gender related issues in the mining activities.

Muke said women were trained on how to manage the environment during the course of their activities.

She said women were given the skills on how to deal with environmental issues because mining activities not only degrade the land via deforestation but also pollute the underground water through illicit deposits of mine waste.

Muke explained that women were taught that each time they mine, they need to take care of the environment because if they don’t, it will in turn hurt them.

She said the training in mining environmental management included the existing plan regarding what would happen to the mine holes.

She said after mining, the miners have an option of either burying the mine holes or transforming them into fish ponds where they would also begin another money generating venture.

She said women having basic knowledge on safety measures would help them to reduce accidents associated with the activities.

The safety measures which were taught to women included skills on how to protect their children from mining threats.

She said women were given serious warning to never allow their children access to the mine environment.

This warning is in line with the international protocols which protect the rights of children from hazardous activities.

She said Zambia is a signatory to the international protocols that protect the rights of children and warned that women who will be found wanting risk not only losing their mining rights but prosecution.