Community perspectives on IRMA: The Unki Mine audit – IRMA

In late June the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA, an IRMA member) published Community success stories: Tracking service delivery and environmental issues, a blog explaining the Shurugwi Development Trust’s experiences with the independent audit of Anglo American’s Unki platinum group metals mine in Zimbabwe. We excerpt it below:

Through meetings facilitated by the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA), Unki mine embarked on a third party-audit process against the IRMA standard in 2019 that involved the Shurugwi community, [achieved] IRMA 75 in the audit report. In 2022, a surveillance audit for Unki Mine was done, communities shared their concerns with the audit firm SCS Global. This was after the mine publicly audited against the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) [voluntary] standard for Responsible Mining in 2019.

ZELA, which is the only Zimbabwean member of the IRMA Civil Society Organisations global working group on worker and community engagement rights participated in development of data collection tools for communities such as the Community impact survey, IRMA Audits and Communities, sample letter to mining company, tools that can be used to monitor service delivery, engage with mining companies and government. The IRMA processes have enhanced Unki Mine’s relationship with the community, through the community engagement forum which meets quarterly to discuss the company’s mining operations in the community.

Benefits of the Unki IRMA processes and audit to the Shurugwi Community

• There is now great improvement in the relationship and trust between the company and the community.
• There is now an active quarterly community engagement forum meeting where 2 people were selected from each of the surrounding villages to represent the community. The relationship is promoting access to information which is enshrined in Section 62 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
• In addition to the Community Engagement Forum, there is an emergency and response Coordinator which includes village chairpersons.
• The IRMA audit report is a source of information, assists in identifying gaps and strengths to improve our engagements with government through evidence gathering on mining operations and their impact on communities’ wellbeing, rights and the environment.
• The IRMA audit reports assist us in carrying out our advocacy work and provides us with information to participate in national, regional and international dialogues such as Alternative Mining Indaba.
• Unki mine funded 4 partners – Technoserve, World vision, Zvandiri and Apostolic Women Empowerment Trust (AWET) – to implement community development projects.
• The company is capacitating women with knowledge on their health and empowering them to stand for their rights. It also encourages women in the apostolic sect to register and go for hospital deliveries.  In support, AWET also trains behavior change facilitators (BCFs) on safe motherhood.
• Unki mine promoted hygiene in the community, building Double Blair Ventilated Improved Pit Latrines in ward 19 and part of ward 18 (now ward 4).