- Zimbabwe to open more coal mines
- Critics warn of environmental costs
As the world moves towards cleaner energy sources, the Zimbabwean government plans to open more coal mines. The government says the coal mines will help create jobs and help improve the electricity supply in the country. The government plans to make the Northwest district of Hwange a coal hub with investments of up to $1 billion.
However, environmental activists have faulted the government’s plans, citing the environmental impact of more coal mines. Climate change activist and head of the Matabeleland Institute for Human Rights, Khumbulani Maphosa, while condemning the plans said, “Zimbabwe can’t be going back to coal as if we were in 1985 or 1977, while the whole world is now divesting from coal,”
“We are going to see a rise in terms of our carbon footprint and our contribution to … climate change, because it doesn’t matter whether this coal is burnt in Zimbabwe, in China, in South Africa or wherever,” Maphosa added.