“Schoolchildren in Zimbabwe drop out for lithium mines” 7 March 2024

...Power China, a Chinese state-owned conglomerate, built the Sabi Star mine in 2022. Covering 2,637 hectares, it is owned by Max Mind Investments, the Zimbabwean subsidiary of Shenzhen Chengxin Lithium Group.

By creating jobs, the mine has brought relief for some families from neighbouring villages Mukwasi and Togara...But there have been downsides too. Many of the roughly 40 families relocated to make space for the mine did not feel properly consulted or legally represented...

Moreover, with their families struggling to afford school fees, some students from Mavangwe and Mukwasi secondary schools have begun dropping out to work on the mine instead...

Joshua (not his real name) left secondary school for a mining job after his parents, both unemployed, were unable to pay the US$40 tuition fee for that school term...Joshua earns around US$250 per month, and his situation is not unusual among young Zimbabweans...

Due to poverty and other reasons, students in local secondary schools may begin their education later than normal. “Most of the learners are above 18 years old and it was difficult for the mine to determine whether the hired [mine worker] was still a learner,”...

The situation is not confined to Mukwasi and Togara. Last year, students in Marange district, also in Manicaland province, were reported to have left school amid the diamond rush in the area...

...The high drop-out rate is enabled by unregulated mining in the country, which ignores labour laws on age limits, says Frank Nyasha Mpahlo of Green Governance Zimbabwe Trust, an NGO. The rate is exacerbated by the country’s inadequate child labour laws, stunted economic environment and poor parental guidance, he adds.

Max Mind Investments, the company that owns Sabi Star mine, told China Dialogue it is aiming to introduce a bursary for underprivileged students to stay in school and complete their studies, but did not give further details...