Africa-Press – Angola. A gold extraction project called Lufo – Sociedade de Mineração e Aurífero, with a global cost estimated at 15.2 million dollars, was inaugurated this Monday, in the municipality of Belize, province of Cabinda.
Inaugurated by the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo, the project, located in the town of Caio-Guembo, commune of Miconje, will have a monthly projection of 10 kilos of gold.
It has 273 national workers, with emphasis on young people from the municipalities of Belize and Cabinda, in addition to 11 foreigners of Brazilian and Filipino nationalities.
The project’s geological studies began in 2013 and were completed this month, allowing the start of gold extraction, which, according to the minister, will contribute to economic diversification, increased tax revenues and employment and local development, as well as to stimulate direct private investment in the country.
Diamantino Azevedo said that with the extraction of gold it is possible to turn it into an instrument for monetary reserves and boost exports, in order to allow the collection of currency for the country, adding that the actions developed in this project are aligned with the Executive’s strategy Angolan.
According to the government official, the exploration of gold and other mineral resources is not only an economic activity, but also a commitment to excellence with sustainability and social responsibility, having recommended “scrupulous” compliance with this assumption by the project promoters.
He also urged respect for safety and environmental protection standards.
In turn, the governor of Cabinda, Mara Quiosa, argued that communities should be the first to benefit from the results of mining extraction, through social projects, within the scope of each company’s responsibility.
He praised the decision to give priority to young people for jobs in exploration projects, thus contributing to the fight against unemployment.
The governor of the Miconje commune, Paulo Mabiala, appealed to the promoters of the Lufo project for concrete actions within the scope of the project’s social responsibility, suggesting the construction of health stations, schools, and improvement of access roads and rehabilitation of bridges in the villages surroundings.
Lufo – Sociedade de Mineração e Aurífero is the second largest gold mining project in the province of Cabinda, after Binda, located in the municipality of Buco-Zau and also inaugurated this year.
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