Africa-Press – Angola. The Secretary of State for Mineral Resources, Jânio Victor, this Wednesday in Luanda called on companies in this sector to reinforce the inclusion of women in mining activities, with a view to reducing the current gender disparities in mining.
Speaking at the first edition of the round table on “Women in the Angolan mining industry”, promoted by the company Bumbar Mining, the official also warned businessmen to be more transparent and inclusive in employability plans, promoting a culture of meritocracy.
He also appealed for the need to support the rise of women to higher positions, as well as to promote equal opportunities, without discrimination against women, to improve the quality of their action in corporate decision-making spheres.
According to the Secretary of State, the impact of women’s action goes far beyond the existing statistical numbers, a fact that challenges the sector to continue to make changes, counting on the cooperation of this fringe, which must be willing to grow in the profession.
For Jânio Victor, it is proven that having more women occupying different positions in all operations allows the Minas Gerais industry to reinvent itself from the inside out.
For her part, geologist Joaquina Costa considered mining activity to be difficult and characterized by various “bad weather”, especially for women, who must reconcile domestic and professional life.
To overcome these barriers, the professional, who has been working in mining for 25 years, needs to be creative in order to be able to resist the difficulties that the profession imposes.
The advisor at Sociedade Mineira do Calonda said that, currently, the reconciliation of family and professional life is easier, due to the evolution of new technologies, which allow greater interaction with the family.
Despite the adversities of the profession, the specialist encourages the new generation to invest in this area of knowledge, without fear or prejudice, but facing the challenges.
The mining engineer, Esperança dos Santos, recognized that, currently, there is some progress in the insertion of women in the mining sector, taking into account the increase of this fringe in this activity.
The also president of the Angolan Association of Women in Geosciences, said that her association has been working towards young women embracing this profession, encouraging the new generation to invest in technical-scientific knowledge.
Esperança dos Santos, also an Endiama employee, made it known that of the 11,000 workers in the mining sector, only 10% (1,100) are women, a still tiny percentage of this type in this activity.
The round table on “Women in the Angolan mining industry”, an event that is now held annually by Bumbar Mining, essentially aims at sharing the experiences of women in the mining sector and reflecting on the new challenges of this activity in the country.
Mirempet results
As for the results achieved by the sector, in recent years, the Secretary of State for Mineral Resources said that there has been a significant increase in the prospecting of minerals, such as copper, nickel, cobalt, rare earth elements, niobium and phosphates, some of which are essential for the energy transition.
Likewise, he pointed out the increase in the exploitation of diamonds, ornamental rocks, silica sand, clay, gypsum, limestone and the beginning of the exploration of gold, iron and manganese, in the post-independence period, as the remarkable advances of mining activity in the country. .
He also pointed out the approval and implementation of the new governance model for the mining sector, as well as the construction of the Saurimo Mining Development Pole as the main achievements of the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas (Mirempet).
He also highlighted the inauguration of diamond cutting factories, the Technical-Professional Training Center for the technicians needed for mining and other industrial activities, as well as the emergence of a Training Center for Diamond Appraisers and Lapidaries, as well as other achievements of the sector.
Regarding the challenges of Mirempet, Jânio Victor underlined that the sector will continue to reflect on the scope of the transformations that have occurred in the sector and create greater interaction of women in the value chain of the mining sector.
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