Barrick Beyond Borders - May 2012 - Barrick Gold Corporation

A BARRICK GOLD REPORT ON RESPONSIBLE MINING | BEYOND BORDERSDR. C.R. MAJINGE, DIRECTOR GENERALOF THE BUGUNDO MEDICAL CENTRE.Since being unveiled, the ABG Maendeleo Fund has allocatedthe majority of its initial $10 million budget. The funding willsupport numerous sustainable development initiatives. Forinstance, the fund is contributing $290,000 for the expansion ofthe Bugundo Medical Centre in the city of Mwanza. The 900-bedfacility is one of the largest referral and teaching hospitals in thecountry, serving a population of about 13 million people. ABG’scontribution will help build two new surgical theaters at theCentre and pay for a new endoscopy machine.“We greatly appreciate this assistance, which will markedlyimprove the surgical care for our patients,” says Dr. C.R. Majinge,Director General of the Bugando Medical Centre.At the local level, the fund is providing $390,000 for the constructionof a new health clinic in the village of Mwendakulimanear ABG’s Buzwagi mine. The facility will serve as an outpatientclinic that provides treatment for minor medical matters to moreserious illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS and malaria.The fund will also provide $120,000 for the construction ofa kitchen and mess hall at the Busoka High School, an all-girlsschool in the village of Busoka near Buzwagi. A separate $120,000contribution is being made to the Chapulwa Primary School in thevillage of Chapulwa near the mine. This investment will be usedto repair existing classrooms, and build three new classrooms andtwo new teachers’ houses.“Education is one of the vital ingredients for community development,and we believe that our strategic investment will create anopportunity for the youth in our communities to attain skills thatABG signs benefit agreements with seven North Mara villagesAfrican Barrick Gold (ABG) recently signed Village BenefitAgreements (VBAs) with all seven villages near its North Mara mine,marking a key milestone in a plan to improve community relationswith its neighbors.The VBAs provide for an $8.5million investment in the villages over athree-year period. Investments in each village will differ, but include:• Providing access to clean water• Upgrading of a local health center into a hospital• Improvements to road infrastructure• Extension of electricity lines• Development of school infrastructure (ABG hascommitted to refurbishing and/or building an additional 13 schoolsin communities around the North Mara mine)34