FIVE upscale drilling units have been bought by the State Mining Corporation (STAMICO) as part of a current plan to purchase 15 such drilling equipment.

Anthony Mavunde, the sector minister, made this observation in his opening speech at the 7th edition of the Geita international mining exhibition, noting that the financing is part of the current financial year’s 231bn/- total estimates for the Minerals ministry.

GST is expected to purchase a survey plane equipped for carrying out a countrywide airborne geological survey, to determine the extent and distribution of deposits of specific minerals or similar rock layers across the country.

In the current financial year the sector is targeted to raise upwards of 1trn/-, partly on account of the work to be done with the drilling units, he said, noting that ten more pieces of equipment are expected within weeks.

The facilities will be distributed to various zones with mining activities, with two drilling units handed to women and youth groups involved in the sector in line with a presidential directive, he stated.

The Tanzania Mining Commission is slated to buy 89 new vehicles and 140 motorbikes to fast track service delivery, hailing the increased budget allocations for the sector.

“The parent ministry is working tooth and nail to ensure the money is spent in a patriotic manner to bring about the needed outcomes, “ he said, underlining that for years, the ministry’s estimates stood below 90bn/-, now raised to 231bn/-.

Showing how mining sector activity in total national income is rising, he said that in 2017, the sector contributed.

A GDP contribution of up to 10 percent by end of 2025 is envisaged, he said, expressing optimism in line with several positive indicators. In 2015/16, a total of 161bn/- in mining sector revenue collections was earned, and during fiscal 2023/24 the sector contributed 753bn/-, he said.

To this end, the government has injected a total of 115bn/- for the Geological Survey of Tanzania (GST) to purchase an aerial survey plane, helping small-scale miners to avoid wasting time and capital. They have put their energies into areas with unviable deposits of gold or gemstones, while tailor-made geological surveying by a plane will give them a better chance to hit targets at the right locations.

The survey is intended to enable the mapping out of most relevant areas, to reliably indicate the probable availability of deposits in different areas in the country, he said.

GST will similarly proceed to build a vast and modern laboratory to facilitate professional testing of samples of minerals for certification or advice, he said.

The lab facility will permit local miners and dealers to test their product samples, crucial services that they are now sought for in private labs or from outside the country, thus likely to be overly expensive, he explained.

The agency is also working to install a minerals measuring lab in Geita as the government moves to ensure technological advancement in the sector, he added