Over 76% of Otjikoto mine’s procurement in 2022 came from in-country purchases, with approximately $1 million (About N$19.5 million) spent directly on small- and medium sized enterprises within the mine’s area of influence, B2Gold President and CEO, Clive Johnson has said in the gold miner’s responsible mining report.
However this was a decrease in local procurement (from 89% in 2021) which the miner said was due to the need to hire an international contractor for the underground mining project.
The miner states that Otjikoto also encourages its suppliers to support local social development programs. In 2022, Treron, which provides construction and maintenance services to the mine, provided opportunities to youth who are systematically excluded from the job market due to their low-income family background, lack of education, or lack of previous experience. Treron employed 44 youth on fixed-term contracts, some of whom had the opportunity to receive additional training and employment with the Otjikoto Mine.
“B2Gold’s unwavering commitment to responsible mining has been a cornerstone of our organizational culture since our inception over 15 years ago. We take pride in being a growth-oriented company that maintains high sustainability standards, and we approach new opportunities with discipline, innovation, and a focus on environmental stewardship and social responsibility. Our dedication to responsible mining is deeply ingrained in our values and drives us to constantly seek out new ways to uphold our sustainability commitments while pursuing challenging endeavours in new locations.
“B2Gold continues to be an industry leader in its responsible mining practices. The highlights mentioned above are only a small subset of the activities our employees and partners were able to achieve in 2022, and I commend our team for the important work and milestones they’ve accomplished over the year. We look forward to new and exciting challenges in 2023 and know that through the commitment of the entire B2Gold global team, we will continue our path of positive sustainability performance,” Johnson says.
At Otjikoto the miner’s approach to local employment focuses on recruiting individuals from designated groups, as set out in the country’s Affirmative Action (Employment) Act. Preference is given to previously disadvantaged Namibians and those from local communities.
“B2Gold supports the redress of imbalance in the Namibian workplace caused by the historic legacy of discriminatory socio-economic practices. This is achieved through the implementation of employment equity principles and affirmative action measures. Our Affirmative Action Plan has resulted in a workforce that is 95% Namibian from previously disadvantaged groups. Furthermore, only 1.7% of the total workforce is non-Namibian and the positions of nonNamibian employees all have Namibian understudies.
“The number of previously disadvantaged employees (including women) at middle and senior management levels is 62%. In the past year, 97.8% of recruitment and 92.5% of promotions were from previously disadvantaged groups. These indicators continue to trend in a positive direction year on year,” explains the miner.
Speaking about biodiversity, the miner noted that invasive species eradication is a priority in order to minimize the potential threat to biodiversity. B2Gold states that if not removed from topsoil prior to usage on rehabilitation sites, these undesirable plants will establish on restored landscapes, affecting their functionality and productivity.
“Six species of invasive plants are found at the Otjikoto Mine. Beyond the removal of invasive vegetation, transplanting indigenous species is another way of ensuring the increase in indigenous plants and encouraging progressive vegetation and ecological succession. The Otjikoto Rehabilitation Nursery has become a valuable facility in this regard.
“The nursery serves as a source of trees for transplant on rehabilitation sites and approximately 3,350 trees have been transplanted since 2020. The effective eradication and management of invasive species and the transplant of indigenous species on topsoil stockpiles and rehabilitation sites will enhance the functionality and sustainability of the disturbed areas, thus paving a way to successful ecological restoration at Otjikoto,” the miner said.