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Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Act, 2003 (Act No. 53 of 2003)

Codes of Good Practice on Black Economic Empowerment

Mining Sector Charter

Scorecard for the Broad Based Socio-Economic Empowerment Charter for the South African Mining Industry

Preamble

 

Recognising:

 

• The history of South Africa, which resulted in blacks, mining communities and women largely being excluded from participating in the mainstream of the economy, and the formal mining industry‘s stated intention to adopt a proactive strategy of change to foster and encourage black economic empowerment (BEE) and transformation at the tiers of ownership, management, skills development, employment equity, procurement and rural development;

 

• The imperative of redressing historical and social inequalities as stated by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, in inter alia section 9 on equality (and unfair discrimination) in the Bill of Rights;

 

• The policy objective stated in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act to expand opportunities for historically disadvantaged persons to enter the mining and minerals industry or benefit from the exploitation of the nation’s mineral resources;

 

• The scarcity of relevant skills has been identified as one of the barriers to entry into the mining sector by historically disadvantaged South Africans (HDSA’s);

 

• The slow progress made with employment equity in the mining industry compared to other industries.

 

Noting that

 

• It is government’s stated policy that whilst playing a facilitating role in the transformation of the ownership profile of the mining industry it will allow the market to play a key role in achieving this end and it is not the government’s intention to nationalise the mining industry.

 

• The key objectives of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act and that of the Charter will be realised only when South Africa’s mining industry succeeds in the international market place where it must seek a large part of its investment and where it overwhelmingly sells its product and when the socio-economic challenges facing the industry are addressed in a significant and meaningful way.

 

• The transfer of ownership in the industry must take place in a transparent manner and for fair market value.

 

• That the following laws would also assist socio-economic empowerment:
• The Preferential Procurement Framework Act (No. 5 of 2000)
• The Employment Equity Act (No 55 of 1998);
• The Competition Act.(No. 89 of 1998) (Also ref. To the Amendment Act No. 35 of 1999 and subsequent amendments);
• The Skills Development Act (No. 97 of 1998).

 

Therefore

 

The signatories have developed this Charter to provide a framework for progressing the empowerment of historically disadvantaged South Africans in the Mining and Minerals Industry. The signatories of this Charter acknowledge:

Section 100. (2) (a) of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, which states that, to insure the attainment of Government’s objectives of redressing historical social and economic inequalities as stated in the Constitution, the Minister of Minerals and Energy must within six months from the date on which this act takes effect develop a Broad-Based Socio-Economic Empowerment (BBSEE) Charter.