1 Project Summary
The project seeks to have Empowered women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining benefiting from mining in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner, in Gwanda. It will be implemented by Mthandazo Women Miners Association. Mthandazo is a legally registered trust with 30 members currently subscribed to the group. The group seeks to secure collective economic empowerment of women miner, miler and traders. The specific project objectives are to empower women in artisanal and small scale gold mining to assert and claim their rights in the sustainable management of natural resources, to empower women in artisanal and small scale gold mining to adopt environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices and to develop and document good practices stories on women in small scale and artisanal gold scale mining

The project is meant to address challenges related to the use of mercury and land degradation in the mining sector. To be specific, the challenges include lack or limited knowledge on land rehabilitation in the mining areas as stated in the Environmental Management Act of Zimbabwe, the use of mercury and the effects mercury has on the environment and the health of women in mining. The project will encourage the use of technologies that require minimal use of chemical in the mining, milling and processing gold. It will encourage, exhibit and document the good mining practices being done by some syndicates. The project will also encourage exchange visits and information sharing among the miner and other key stakeholders at both local and national level.
1.2 Organizational Background and Capacity to implement the project
The Mthandazo Women Miners Association was formed by 30 local women in Gwanda District, although the group is now made up of 50 women after others joined the group. The women's group also secured support from UNDP through the Ministry of Women Affairs to establish a Women Gold Service Centre in Gwanda . The Gold Service Centre has a Stamp mill for gold processing. The Plant was launched on the 25th of November 2016 in Colleen Bawn area in Gwanda District at a cost of $50 000. The project was meant to help women to mill and process gold and to economically empower them, their families and the community. The plan was also to provide mining equipment for hire to women miners and others in Gwanda as well as promoting access to mining extension services at low prices for women. The Gold Service Centre has a gold ore processing unit and creates a forum for women miners and millers to network, share mining information, skills and experiences, and for marketing gold.

The individual members of Mthandazo are women mostly women miners, who are now collectively involved in gold mining, milling and trade through the Gold Service Centre as one Syndicate. Through the Women's Gold Service Centre, the group provides a service centre to other artisanal and small-scale miners in Gwanda. The government gold buying entity, Fidelity Printers and Refineries buys gold from the Gold Service Centre. Mthandazo primarily support women miners by pooling resources together to access mining claims and marketing gold. The mill is owned by women. They also share information and knowledge on mining and business management. The group seeks to ensure that the rights of women miners are protected in light of the conflicts in the gold mining sector in Gwanda where gold gangs often fight and kill each other over mining claims and proceeds.

Legally, Mthandazo Women Miners Association is registered as a Trust under Deed No. MA02155/2018. The Deed was lodged in August 2018. Out of the 30 existing members, 6 are part of the Board of Trustees for the Association that makes decisions on projects, financial management and distribution of proceeds. The Gold Service Centre has 9 workers who are working on a full-time basis. Some workers are engaged on a part time basis. The Centre processes 500-700 grammes of gold per month for artisanal miners and makes an average of 200 grammes of gold per week from miners. From milling and compressor hiring services the Centre makes an average of US$8 000.

In its registration documents, the objectives of Mthandazo are stated as including securing the economic empowerment of women miners, to encourage women participation in economic activity, to participate in mining through women ventures, to enable women miners to share information, skills and knowledge on mining and business management, to offer technical assistance to women miners and to promote sustainable mining practices among others. Mthandazo through its members invest in mining projects in Gwanda and generates money through Gold processing and trading at the Service Centre.

Mthandazo Women Miners Association was also registered in 2016 by the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development as a Syndicate under the Gold Mobilisation programme. Government has taken steps to promote artisanal and small-scale gold mining through the Syndication project. The association in partnership with the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA) has received financial assistance form the European Partnership for Responsible Mineral (EPRM) to implement a project that promotes women led safe, traceable, responsible and profitable artisanal and small scale gold mining in Zimbabwe.
1.3 Project Objectives and Expected Results
? Problem statement or challenge the project intends to address
In artisanal and small-scale gold mining mercury is used to recover minuet pieces of gold that are mixed up with the sand. While mercury is naturally occurring chemical the use of mercury in mining has negative environmental and health effects when not handled properly. Prolonged exposure has effects on the nervous, digestive and reproductive systems. It can contaminate water bodies resulting in the death of marine fauna and flora. and in women has resulted in cervical cancer and birth defects in pregnant women exposed to it. The disease?s most notable symptoms are convulsions, loss of muscle coordination, and damage in vision, speech, and hearing.
? Overall project goal/primary objective

Empowered women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining benefiting from mining in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner
? Specific objectives

? To empower women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining to adopt environmentally friendly and stainable mining and processing practices
? To empower women in artisanal and small-scale god mining to assert and claim their rights in the sustainable management of natural resources
? Develop and document stories on women in small scale and artisanal gold scale mining

? Rationale/justification of the project
Mtandazo women miners are also facing challenges such as poor working conditions, poor health, safety and environmental standards. The women miners still use mercury which is toxic in milling processes, while the cost of environmental impact assessments is prohibitive. Inefficient gold production methods, the cost of licences and lack of equipment to carry out geological surveys affect productive, sustainable mining and milling. The women have however adopted some environmentally friendy gold processing practises that reduce the use of mercury and should be shared and doucmented with other women in the artisinal and small scael gold mining sector


Table 1: Objectives, activities, outputs and outcomes

? OBJECTIVE 1: To empower women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining to assert and claim their rights in the sustainable management of natural resources

Outputs Activities Outcome
Output 1: Women have better understanding of the safety, health and environment legislation in Zimbabwe

Output 2: Registered women miners as legal entities


Output 3: Trained women with understanding on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

Indicators for planned actions:
? 1 training on safety, health and environment legislation in Zimbabwe (output 1)
? 5 registration deeds of women miners (output 2)
? 1 training on EIAs

Baseline:
? 1 training on safety, health and environment legislation in Zimbabwe
? 1 registered group of women miners
? 0 trainings on EIAs
Target:
? One training with 30 women
? 5 women to be registered
? One EIA training to done
1. Legal training on safety, health and environmental legislation


2. Registration of women miners into legal entities

3. Training on the Environmental Impact Assessment Empowered women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining who can assert and claim their rights in the sustainable management of natural resources.

OBJECTIVE 2: To empower women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining to adopt environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices

Outputs Activities Outcome
Output 4: Trained women on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices



Output 5: Procured and installed solar powered borehole and power supply


Output 7: Procured table gold catcher


Indicators for planned actions:
? Number of trainings on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices
?
? Installed and functional solar powered borehole and power supply
? Installed and functional table gold catcher
?
Baseline:
? 0 of trainings on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices
? 0 installed solar powered borehole and power supply
? 0 table gold catcher
Target:
? Number of trainings on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices
? Number of solar powered borehole(s) and power supply to be installed
? Number of table gold catcher(s)
Training on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices




Procurement of solar powered borehole and power supply



Procurement of table gold catcher Empowered women in artisanal and small-scale gold mining who are conscious and knowledgeable on environmentally friendly and sustainable mining and processing practices


OBJECTIVE 3: Develop and document stories on women in small-scale and artisanal gold scale mining ?????????????????????????????
Outputs Activities Outcome
Output 3: Exchange visits for women to learn and share form other district on safe mining practices being done ?????????.
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Indicators for planned actions:
? Number of exchange visits for women to learn and share form other district on safe mining practices being done
Baseline:
? 0 exchange visits for women to learn and share form other district on safe mining practices done
Target:
? Number of exchange visits for women to learn and share form other district on safe mining practices to be done Facilitate Exchange visits for women to learn and share form other district on safe mining practices being done Documented stories on women in small-scale and artisanal gold scale mining

(N.B Can add more rows if you have more than three objectives)
1.5 Implementation Plan and Time Frame