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Untrue gold miners not being helped – Govt.
Government has refuted claims by miners that it is not doing enough to help the industry.
Precious metal
The Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners’ Association (GGDMA) last week reportedly said that it was unhappy over Government’s response to hardships faced by its members. It said that all Government was doing was issuing press releases.
Permanent Secretary, Joslyn McKenzie, of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, which is responsible for the mining sector, wrote GGDMA’s President, Patrick Harding on Friday, saying that Government notes with consternation the comments.
“Given the article, there seems to be a prevailing sense of misunderstanding and/or miscommunication on the part of the GGDMA and as such, the Ministry takes this opportunity to provide and seek clarifications on these matters.”
According to the Ministry, following requests and appeals of the mining association regarding the high costs of fuel as a primary input into the production process, an importation licence was requested and granted in 2013 to facilitate cheaper import of fuel.
Additionally, at the request of the association, Government also approved the waiver of 10 percent of the applicable tariff on imported diesel fuel under the licence.
“It should be noted that the Guyana Revenue Authority and Guyana Energy Agency also provided extensive guidance to the association on the advancement of their proposed operation. To date we are still awaiting a response from the association which has requested permission to use local dealers in the interim whilst they develop storage facilities.”
On the issue of duty free concessions, the Permanent Secretary in the letter to GGDMA and which was released to media houses said it has been granting the tax breaks for all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), excavators, bulldozers and other machinery so that small and medium scale operations continue to benefit from duty free concessions granted to miners. Government is also working closely with the GGDMA to approve the granting of waivers for double-cab pickups to various categories of miners based on their production levels.
“As indicated by the GGDMA, the approval was granted effective January 2015 and the association has been invited to review and sign the agreement to commence the process.”
With regard to duty free concessions on spares, the Ministry said that Government has been working with miners on this and to date approval has been granted on the waiver of tariffs and duties on matting that the GGMDA pointed out was pivotal to their operations.
“The list of suppliers recommended by the GGDMA was approved for tax waivers on the importation, and we are advised that to date, a number of transactions have been processed.”
Regarding security in the mining areas, the Ministry insisted that it has facilitated meetings between the Minister of Home Affairs, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and GGDMA with the understanding of the security concerns and constraints facing the sector.
“In addition, we are advised that a committee was created to address security matters. However, if the mechanisms implemented to address security concerns prove to be inadequate then we are sure that when the association reaches with Head of the GPF and the Hon. Minister, the situation will be addressed.”
The Ministry made it clear that the Government is supporting the mining sector and will “continue to work earnestly and assiduously to ensure that the industry remains viable and sustainable. In this regard, the Ministry finds the recent comments by the association surprising after there would have been numerous engagements and deliberations on these very same matters.”
A meeting has since been arranged for March 05 at 13:00 hrs with President Donald Ramotar.
Gold mining has been the biggest foreign currency earner for Guyana over the past seven years, before falling behind rice last year, after a drop in world prices.
Miners have been agitating for measures to help the industry stay afloat as costs remain high.
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