Social responsibility

A company is the sum of the talents, commitment and ambition of human beings. We therefore place the highest priority on the interests of our people and their communities. In particular, this demands:
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Social management expertise

Operating in rural areas of Tanzania brings certain challenges. Generally, infrastructure and social services are limited and many members of local communities face the daily challenges of poverty. To conduct our business effectively and appropriately a solid understanding of the local operating environment is imperative. ABG has therefore created a Community Relations team; an energetic group of 50 full-time employees with a deep understanding of Tanzania’s social and community structure and way of life. Its core objectives are to manage potential social impacts that mining can create and to explore the opportunities available to us as an organisation to develop and enhance benefits for the communities where we live and work.

In addition to the work conducted by our community relations specialists, we also achieve effective social management through:

  • our senior management team’s long experience of operating in Africa
  • a culture where all employees are ABG ambassadors
  • the closest focus on the environment, security, human resources and health and safety
  • developing a single streamlined approach to manage all community relations.

Externally, we continue to develop our community relations practices through engagement with key organisations including the International Council on Mining & Metals, the World Bank and the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Stakeholder engagement

We are committed to inclusive and transparent community engagement in order to build and maintain trust with our host communities and to ensure that our activities are informed by their perspectives, concerns and priorities.

For this reason, we maintain an ongoing dialogue with individuals, community leaders, government representatives and non-governmental organisations. Furthermore, we have:

  • established a formal grievance procedure which allows local stakeholders to have any complaints investigated and resolved
  • trained and employed local community members to act as village liaison officers providing a two-way conduit of information and feedback
  • created liaison centres within the communities around three of our mines to ensure that all community members have easy access to information about mine activities
  • used sports programmes to build local relationships and convey key messages on issues such as public health.

Mitigating impacts on communities

Any large-scale industry can bring issues as well as benefits to a local community. Therefore, identifying and mitigating any potential negative impacts of our operations is of key importance to us.

We aim to embed social impact identification and mitigation in our day-to-day operations and asset cycles, from the exploration stage right through to mine closure. Therefore we:

  • conduct full Social Impact Assessments before and throughout the life of a mine
  • ensure our community relations function is involved in all risk assessments
  • seek to avoid or at least minimise involuntary resettlement, wherever possible
  • operate an active road safety programme
  • align our approach to illegal mining and trespassing with the protection of human rights and the principles contained in the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights
  • have initiated Health Impact Assessments (HIA) at all of our projects.

Employing and buying locally

We recognise that we can act as an important catalyst for local development.

We seek to recruit from our host communities and to purchase goods and services locally or regionally, wherever possible. We hold seminars to explain the business opportunities available to local suppliers and contractors, as well as the processes we use to establish supplier relationships.

At North Mara, we have helped local businessmen to form a chamber of commerce and a co-operative that provides microfinance.

At Bulyanhulu, we have assisted a local community co-operative. Some 5,288 members from 12 villages now benefit from the labour and services they provide to the mine.

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