President Cyril Ramaphosa has welcomed Lesotho’s co-operation in dealing with illegal mining.
In Pretoria on Thursday, he told the country’s prime minister, Samuel Matekane, who is on a working visit to SA to co-chair the historic inaugural session of the binational commission that such activities took a toll on both countries’ economies.
“We were deeply saddened by the unfortunate loss of lives of illegal miners in Harmony Gold Mine in Welkom. Our respective governments are working with the mining company on the best methods, as well as the plan that has been put in place to retrieve the remains of the miners without endangering the rescue personnel,” said Ramaphosa.
The matter is highly sensitive and “emotive”, particularly for the people of Lesotho. and SA “will do everything that we can to make sure this whole challenge we have been presented with is properly handled”, he added.
Both leaders were aware of the “sensitivity and complexity” of the matter, said the president.
Ramaphosa also welcomed Matekane’s commitment to prioritise the implementation and completion of the comprehensive national reform process.
The elevation of the bilateral commission of co-operation between the two countries to a binational commission was testament to the unwavering commitment to further bolster relations for mutual benefit, he said.
“SA attaches great importance to its bilateral relations and co-operation with Lesotho. Our relationship is anchored in historic bonds of language, culture and heritage. Economic relations between our two countries have grown over the years and continue to mutually benefit our respective peoples,” said Ramaphosa.
Source link : https://www.sowetanlive.co.za/amp/news/south-africa/2023-09-29-sa-and-lesotho-join-forces-to-fight-illegal-mining/
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Publish date : 2023-09-29 07:00:00
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