Speaking during the tour of Marange diamond area recently, Mpofu said only big companies would be given licences as small miners did not have the capacity to meet the standards of the Kimberly Certification Process.
“If we give permits to small scale miners it will end up being chaotic,” he said. Mpofu’s statement has put a final nail in the coffin of indigenous pressure groups who were trying to bulldoze their way into Chiadzwa under the disguise of indigenization.
Mining analysts said security was the backbone of any diamond mining activities across the world and therefore it was practically impossible for government to grant permits to small-scale miners.