By Chantelle Kotze,
DUAL-listed Nevsun Resources reported a significant safety achievement in its 2014 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report titled Positive Directions, having achieved 21.7 million hours without a Lost Time Injury as at December 31, 2014.
This equates to three years of no work-related fatality, occupational disease, lost time accidents or lost time days at Nevsun’s Bisha Mine, in Eritrea, during construction, development or operation.
The Bisha mine is 60% owned and operated by Bisha Mining Share Company, an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Nevsun, while the remaining 40% of the issued outstanding shares are owned by the Eritrean National Mining Corporation (ENAMCO), an Eritrean entity owned by the State of Eritrea.
Nevsun CEO Cliff Davis says CSR is a cornerstone element of Nevsun’s strategy. “Our report demonstrates the collaborative, determined efforts to advance a corporate social responsibility program at the Bisha mine. Nevsun has enhanced dialogue and transparency through direct feedback with both internal and external stakeholders, in Eritrea and globally, to ensure that it continues to operate this world class asset in a responsible and sustainable manner.”
The report highlighted the work that Nevsun is doing with its partner ENAMCO in contributing to setting the national standard for evolving international business practices in the country’s growing mineral resource sector.
“We believe one of our greatest legacies in Eritrea, in partnership with ENAMCO, will be the training programs we have provided to the domestic workforce with both practical and theoretical skills in the mining sector. These training programs enable Eritreans to take on enhanced responsibilities and receive increased levels of remuneration with their evolving, transferable skillsets,” Davies says.
The report also indicated the community engagement work being undertaken by Nevsun. The company has engaged with its seven community liaison officers who continually play a pro-active role in assisting with local engagement and maximising local opportunities for employment.
Nevsun has also managed another year of no reportable environmental incidents and improved fauna/flora management practices including the planting of over 11 000 seedlings for biodiversity offset.
CSR 2014 Report