Traditional leaders, local councillors and environmental stakeholders on Thursday
gathered for a key session at the PlanetGOLD Zimbabwe Annual Stakeholders Conference focused on balancing artisanal and small-scale gold mining with the protection of sensitive ecosystems.
Session 2, titled “Responsible Mining & Protected Areas,” examined Jurisdictional and Landscape Approaches for Sustainable Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) in Protected Areas, with Umfurudzi National Park as the central case study.
Participants stressed that lasting solutions require genuine collaboration between traditional leadership, local authorities and environmental regulators. The discussion highlighted the need for coordinated land-use planning that supports miners’ livelihoods while preventing environmental degradation, mercury pollution and encroachment into protected zones.
Umfurudzi National Park, covering approximately 76,000 hectares in Shamva District, has long faced pressure from both formal and informal mining activities along its rivers and boundaries.
PlanetGOLD Zimbabwe has already begun engaging stakeholders in the landscape to promote mercury-free practices, participatory risk mapping and stronger institutional coordination.
Speakers noted that landscape approaches — which look beyond individual mining sites to the wider ecosystem and community dynamics — offer a practical pathway.
By bringing chiefs, rural district councils, the Environmental Management Agency, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and mining communities to the same table, the session sought practical measures that promote responsible mining without compromising biodiversity or water resources.
The engagement forms part of the broader PlanetGOLD Zimbabwe project, which aims to support 7,500 miners across 11 districts, reduce mercury use by 4.85 tonnes, and improve the management of around 76,000 hectares of landscapes.
Day Two of the conference continues to focus on how environmental protection and sustainable land management can be integrated into the formalisation of the ASGM sector.
Stakeholders left the session with a clearer call for joint action: traditional leaders and local authorities must be central partners if Zimbabwe is to achieve responsible gold mining that safeguards its protected areas for future generations.
