The Secretary of State for Manica Province, Lourenço Lindonde, has confirmed that there is no violation of Decree 35/2025, of September 30, at the mine popularly known as Seis Carros, in the Vanduzi district, which prohibits gold extraction in that area of the country.
The official made the statement on Saturday after visiting the mine, which gathers more than nine thousand people of various nationalities engaged in artisanal mining.
In addition to miners, the site also hosts individuals involved in other activities associated with artisanal mining. Some work within cooperatives, while others operate individually.
Lourenço Lindonde said he left the site satisfied, as he found no evidence of violations of the decree, which suspends all gold mining in Manica Province indefinitely.
“There were people who violated the decree under the cover of night, but the local authorities located them and handed them over to the justice system. At this moment, there is no one carrying out mining activities,” said Lindonde.
However, there are signs that mining occurred in the past. For some time now, no mining activity has been taking place.
“We came to this mine because it is widely talked about. We wanted to see the situation, how it operates, and the infrastructure of the site. We saw many people, but we confirmed that currently no mine is operating. This is very satisfying. The visit was brief. We did not inform the people beforehand because we did not want them to know about our visit. Even so, we found everything halted, which pleases us greatly,” Lindonde stated.
“Regardless of what we have heard, in reality, we did not find anyone engaging in mining activities.”
The official added that he left the site satisfied to see that miners are organized into cooperatives, which could allow better control of the activity.
“We did find traces of past mining—deep and dangerous holes. We call for patience because the government has already started gradually assessing the measure. Mining gold is still prohibited at this time, but we believe that, gradually, we will overcome this issue,” he added.
“We all know that other minerals are authorized, but gold is still prohibited. So we must be patient, and the government is not ignoring the problem. It is aware that a large part of the population in this region depends on mining. The goal is to organize better for a rational exploitation of mineral resources, especially gold.”
It should be noted that the government decreed the prohibition of mining activity throughout Manica Province due to river pollution and the resulting environmental degradation, which posed a risk to human life.
Pollution was severe in the Révuè, Púnguè, Lucite, and Nhancuarara rivers, as well as in the Chicamba reservoir, due to mercury and cyanide contamination, posing health and agricultural risks.
Source: AIM
