Rwanda extracts less than 50 per cent of its minerals due to the use of poor mining practices, which costs the country billions of potential foreign exchange revenues.

Rwanda generated $373 million (about Rwf325 billion) from mineral exports in 2017. Experts say that the country can double its mineral exports if modern mining techniques are applied.

Rwanda Mines, Petroleum and Gas Board (RMB) targets to increase revenues from minerals to $800 million by 2020 and $1.5 billion annually by 2024.

Francis Gatare, the Chief Executive Officer of RMB, said that the ambition cannot be achieved if miners and all other players do not put in efforts to upgrade from artisanal mining.

"More than 50 per cent of the value of minerals is left in the dirt or goes downstream in the rivers and all this is unrecoverable,” Gatare said.

Gatare was speaking during the launch of the countrywide inspection of mines and quarries. 

Apart from poor mining practices he highlighted siltation of the rivers, unsafe mines, illegal mining activities as some of the challenges affecting the mining sector.

 "Without professional mining it means that all the efforts that go into the blasting, the digging and the extraction of the mineral ore do not result in the full quantity of mineral that one should be receiving,” he added

The mining sector is dominated by artisanal mining, which leads to wastage, Gatare added.

"Government is mobilising investors for partnerships,” he said

Miners say they understand the value of using modern mining techniques but lack the resources to deploy them.

Vestine Kamugwera, the owner of a mine, said banks hadly lend to the mining industry.

"Banks should know that the reason why we remain in the mining profession is because it is a profitable business and if the Government gives us a 10-year operation license why shouldn’t banks give us a loan that can be serviced at least in five years,” she said.

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