2 Otjikoto Final EIA Report 5MB - Asecnam.com

SLR Namibia (Pty) Ltd
SLR Ref.733.01023.0002
Report No.1
Page xiii
Through employment and skills development, the proposed mine will contribute to the three national
development goals of – reducing income inequality, increasing job creation and economic growth. It will
also contribute to the Otjozondjupa Regional Council’s strategic objective “to improve regional economic
development and employment”.
The economic spin-offs from the mine’s construction and operations will create empowerment opportunities
in a range of skills and activities. Employment provides incomes to the employees, their immediate
household members and to others living elsewhere in Namibia who depend on cash remittances. Thus the
assessment of this impact can be summarised as having a high beneficial effect. The work experience
and skills gained through the opportunities that the mine brings will have lasting benefits for all employees,
nationally.
The negative land and natural resource use costs which are estimated to happen over the LoM have
been measured at being just over 3% of the positive contribution of the mine. So the economic benefits
clearly outweigh the negative economic impacts that may occur and the impact has a positive high
severity both with and without mitigation.
The other potential negative economic impact is concerned with mine closure. This is something which is
common to all mines and must be planned for and mitigation provided because the major economic
benefits that the increase in mining will bring to the country cannot be realised without the eventual
impact of closure.
Social - In the local context, Otavi has suffered out-migration and now has half the population it recorded
ten years ago. By contrast, Otjiwarongo has grown by 10,000 people. Otjiwarongo’s capacity to meet the
needs of the project, in terms of available goods and services, is good. Therefore it would be sensible for
the two towns to anticipate and plan for substantial in-migration of around 7 000 people, shared between
the two towns.
In-ward migration can have positive and negative impacts such as:
� Stimulating the local economy and community organization. Mineworkers will require housing
and this will stimulate the construction of housing in both Otavi and Otjiwarongo. Wages and
salaries will be injected into the local economy where they live.
� Developing informal settlements which increase demand/ need for basic infrastructure –housing,
clean water supplies, sanitation, electricity and waste management systems.
� Increasing pressure on government services such as health and education facilities, their staffing
and running cost requirements.
� Increasing incidence of social ills including alcoholism, drug abuse, prostitution, gambling &
criminality. Alcohol abuse is part of the accepted social norm in Namibia and is often stimulated
Otjikoto Gold Mine EIA Report July 2012