Institutional gaps and challenges in artisanal and small-scale mining in South Africa

While South Africa is respected in the mining fraternity for its seemingly prosperous large-scale mining industry; its artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector is characterised by informal and illegal activities with limited prospects for growth and contribution to socio-economic development. This paper examines through literature review, the institutional frameworks e.g. policy, legislation and programmes put in place to facilitate the development of the ASM sector in order to identify the gaps and challenges in the ASM sector. The recognition of the ASM sector in 1994 came with a series of frameworks aimed at supporting the development of the sector. This paper finds that while the main legislative framework broadly supports a transformation agenda as it pertains to ASM (e.g. increasing the participation of disadvantaged South Africans) there is considerable criticism on the requirements of the framework which are argued to have hindered the development of the sector. In line with the current wave of discussions on policy and legislation reforms in the mining and minerals sector in Africa; it is recommended that South Africa as a signatory to the African Mining Vision (AMV), should consider the domestication of the AMV which would result in the development of appropriate support frameworks for the ASM sector to enable it to contribute to the South African economy.