The Chamber of Mines has implored mining firms to be innovative and embrace technology to record progress in their operations and mining business.

And government has called on mining companies to employ methods and technologies that guarantee sustainability in the communities.

Zambia Chamber of Mines chief executive officer Sokwani Chilembo has stressed that mining companies need technology to maintain the mining environment safer for business and workforce.

Speaking during the official opening of fourth Health Safety and Environment Conference themed: ‘leveraging technology for safety, healthy and environmentally sustainable way for all mining activities’ in Ndola, Chilembo encouraged the mines to mitigate severity on mine incidents.

“There is need for us to work harder to extend the period between incidents in the industry and also to mitigate severity on frequency of incidents. Therefore, we need technology as much as possible to assist them to keep their environment as safe as possible. The core component of this as businesses, we must innovative and the core business concept is that you are leveraging on human resource by trying to get the best out of them, which naturally implies that you must capacitate them more with knowledge,” Chilembo said.

Chilembo said for continued progress in the mining sector, there is need for an increased and accumulated technological knowledge in the industry.

He added that the Zambia Chamber of Mines uses annual conferences to ensure best practices in the industry among all players.

“We come here annually in order that we may increase our knowledge base horizons by sharing best practices, sharing information and experiences, and, therefore, the Chamber has gone to great length to try and have a regional and international pool of contributors to our proceedings. It’s something we hope to use to ensure that there are best standards throughout the industry,” Chilembo added.

He urged both local and international mining experts to discuss, address and share experiences on typical matters affecting mining operations and safety, among others.

At the same event Ministry of Mines Permanent Secretary Paul Chanda said government’s desire was to ensure a growing mining industry, using technology that generates benefits with zero negative impact on communities.

He said an increase in mineral production should not be at the expense of human life, adding that government recently expressed serious concerns over high incidents that mine and industrial accidents continued to occur.

“Innovate technology is transforming the way the mining industry operates. Increasing demands for efficient production and workers’ safety are requiring traditional mining companies to embrace innovation,” said Chanda – Suma Systems