en.Wedoany.com Reported - Zimbabwe's largest gold miner, Mutapa Gold Resources, has expanded its artisanal and small-scale mining partnership model to two new locations, targeting the Jena mine in Midlands and the Phoenix Prince Kitsiyatota gold mine in Bindura. This move comes as Zimbabwe intensifies efforts to formalize a sector that now accounts for the majority of the country's gold production.

This follows a two-year pilot at the Elvington mine in West Mashonaland, where approximately 800 artisanal miners operated within Mutapa Gold Resources' ecosystem, producing 20 to 30 kilograms of gold per month.

Chief Executive Officer Patrick Maseva-Shayawabaya stated that the company no longer needs to locate and drive away artisanal miners using drones, but instead views them as partners.

Mutapa Gold Resources provides funding and collaborates with Magaya Mining and the Zimbabwe School of Mines to implement training programs covering mining methods, occupational safety, financial management, and environmental compliance. Graduates receive certification, which Zimbabwe's Minister of Mines, Polite Kambamura, described as a passport to formalization.

This expansion reflects a shift in Zimbabwe's mining policy. Large producers are no longer expelling small-scale operators but are instead encouraged to integrate them into formal production systems with traceability mechanisms and processing infrastructure. Artisanal miners delivered approximately 75% of their gold to Fidelity Gold Refinery, with the subsector producing 34.9 tonnes in 2025, contributing to the country's record output of 46.7 tonnes.

Mutapa Gold Resources plans to double its annual production to 220,000 ounces by 2029 and has secured $75 million in funding from local banks. The company operates the Freda Rebecca, Shamva, and Jena mines, producing 104,626 ounces in the fiscal year ending March 2026. Mutapa Gold Resources is a subsidiary of the sovereign wealth fund Mutapa Investment Fund, directly employing 2,800 people and indirectly supporting an additional 1,300 through contractors, with its operations sustaining the livelihoods of over 4,000 people in mining communities. The company controls 52,000 hectares of mining rights across the country.

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