Johannesburg – Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Gwede Mantashe says illegal mining remains a major threat to South Africa’s mining sector, costing the economy billions and fuelling organised crime.
Speaking at the SA Human Rights Commission’s inquiry into artisanal mining ahead of the 2026 Mining Indaba, Mantashe said illegal mining is linked to violence, human trafficking and weapons smuggling, and has increasingly spread from abandoned mines to active operations.
He noted that illegal mining cost the country about R49 billion in 2019 and highlighted concerns over the involvement of undocumented foreign nationals in several incidents.
Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe, has warned that illegal mining is one of the most pressing challenges facing South Africa’s mining sector – costing the economy billions in lost revenue. https://t.co/JT1mvPat95#GovZAUpdates pic.twitter.com/ETgW19JvG5
— @SAgovnews (@SAgovnews) February 4, 2026
Mantashe said government is responding through Operation Vala Umgodi, rehabilitating abandoned mines, tightening regulations and allocating funding to close unsafe mine openings, while also reviewing mining legislation to strengthen oversight.
“We must be clear: an individual who enters the country illegally and engages in unlawful economic activity cannot be sanitised or reclassified as an artisanal and small-scale miner.
“Whereas illegal mining was once largely confined to derelict and ownerless mines, it is now increasingly encroaching on operational and licensed mines, posing serious risks to safety, security and economic stability,” he said.
Follow African Insider on Facebook, X and Instagram
Picture: X/@GwedeMantashe1
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
