By: Ethiopian press agency

Addis Ababa:- The Benishangul Gumuz Regional Mining Bureau announced that it earned 49 million birr from the mining sector in the 2017 budget year. It was also announced that 3,800 jobs were created in the sector.

The head of the regional mining bureau, Ato Admasu Morka, told to Addis Zemen newspaper; 49 million birr was earned from the mining sector in this fiscal year, which is 98 percent of the target.

Ato Admasu mentioned that it was possible to record a better performance in gold during the fiscal year. In this regard, it was planned to import 1,500 kilograms of gold to the National Bank during the fiscal year, and 4,700 kilograms of gold were imported.

He explained that the macroeconomic reforms implemented by the country, which enabled gold trading to be carried out at the national level; the allocation of a national budget exclusively for gold trading, which alleviated the cash shortage; and the National Bank's provision of incentives to entities importing more than 45 kilograms of gold, are cited as good opportunities for the good performance achieved.

He also recalled that the fact that a task force led by the Deputy Governor has been formed to prevent gold from being illegally transported to Sudan and other areas and that the report submitted is reviewed every month has been a good indicator of the results achieved at the regional level.

Regarding job creation, he mentioned that it was planned to create job opportunities for 4,000 citizens; he explained that in the completed fiscal year, job opportunities were created for 3,800 people in the mining sector alone in the region.

He said that one of the challenges faced during the implementation was the lack of a vehicle that would be able to control illegal trafficking, especially related to gold, to the required level and help transfer the recovered gold to the National Bank. He also noted that the recent support provided by the Ministry will help to solve the problem in the future.

In terms of controlling illegal trafficking, he said that in the 2017 fiscal year, two people were prosecuted, and five scavengers and gold washing machines were seized.

He said that 12 minerals have been identified in the region in connection with mineral exploration, but the lack of equipment to separate minerals, both in the region and the country, has made the exploration work difficult.

Ato Admasu noted that currently, parties requesting to work on the mine are trying to bring their own machinery and work; he expressed confidence that the problem will be resolved in the future following the submission of a request to the ministry.