House Chairperson,
The ACDP notes that this Department had an adjusted budget of R8.9 billion for the 2024/25 financial year, spending R8.8 billion by the end of Q4, or 99.4% of their total budget.
What is unacceptable is that the non-financial performance information of the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources was not readily accessible to enable a scrutiny of the budget against the outcome of performance targets. This limits our oversight when considering the performance of the Department against spending.
We note the Department’s allocation of R2.86 billion with a focus on mine health and safety, regulatory oversight, and policy development. The question begs: does this budget reflect the urgency of our mineral sector’s stagnation, shrinking by 2.8% year on year in March, following a 9.7% plunge in February, or does it reflect the slothful movement caused by red tape?
House Chairperson, S&P Global warned that growth in South Africa’s economy will be limited by endogenous and exogenous threats, including slowing demand from China for key commodities.
The ACDP cautions that a failure to implement constructive structural reforms in the mining sector is an invitation for economic suicide. We have consistently called for policy certainty, streamlined licensing, and a regulatory environment that attracts, not repels, investment. We express concern that the Mineral Resources Development Bill of 2025, while sounding promising, introduces ministerial consent and outdated provisions that risk micromanaging mining companies and deterring capital inflows.
We support the Department’s Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy, identifying rare earth minerals as strategic assets. But strategy without execution is a mirage. As champions of beneficiation and corrupt-free infrastructure development, the ACDP warns that if not implemented, we will remain exporters of raw potential and importers of missed opportunity!
On mine rehabilitation, ethical stewardship must be prioritised, not just economic extraction, because the environmental and financial liabilities remain, long after mining operations have ceased.
South Africa’s mineral wealth is not a curse, but a blessing, if used wisely. It demands stewardship that is efficient, accountable, and future-focused. As Kingdom builders, the ACDP asserts that this budget must be more than numbers, but a catalyst for transformation, investment, and dignity for mining communities across South Africa.
