Homegrown, coordinated CSI that tackles root causes, plans for socioeconomic closure, and is governed by stakeholder-centric standards is how Namibia turns mining into lasting community wealth.
That was the through-line from a “Mining for Generations” conversation featuring Dr. Gabi Schneider (Namibian Uranium Association), Dr. Chris Brown (Namibian Chamber of Environment), and Steve Galloway (independent chairperson).
From offsets to outcomes
Brown said the industry’s environment teams worked with the mines ministry and the Ministry of Environment to publish a best-practice guide, then moved beyond biodiversity offsets to sustainable development offsets that weigh ecology, livelihoods, and the real economy.
He cited two catalytic results: in Oshakati, a Chamber seed of N$500,000, plus N$1.25 million from private investors, created a revolving fund for N$10,000 minimally serviced plots—growing from 125 plots to over 7,500 across 21 settlements, with 5,000 more underway.
In Zambezi, N$860,000 from the Chamber and N$450,000 from the community electrified 900 homesteads, with the most significant gains in SME formation and job creation resulting from access to power.
Closure that creates livelihoods
Brown said Namibia’s approach is shifting from a historic era of abandonment (with more than 150 legacy sites still in need of attention) and compliance-era rehabilitation to a cradle-to-cradle model that pairs biophysical closure with replacement livelihoods.
He pointed to work with B2Gold—planned years before closure—on agriculture, tourism, and wildlife to leave land more productive and communities with income beyond the ore body; this programme is being readied for scientific and popular publication.
Benefits beyond the pit
Schneider said uranium investment helped anchor Arandis and Swakopmund through housing, school support, and the former Cottage Hospital (today’s MediClinic).
She said that minerals belong to all Namibians, so the benefits should extend beyond the host regions; for example, Bannerman Resources supported schools in Omaheke in collaboration with the Ministry of Education.
She noted that Rössing created the Rössing Foundation in 1978, which supports education (including adult education), housing, and northern agriculture. Additionally, Consolidated Diamond Mines built Concordia College, the first multiracial, government-run school.
Schneider said scale must come without dependency: use direct community engagement, apply sustainability checks, and pool funding through the Chamber of Mines and the Namibian Uranium Association.
She added that even in a year dominated by development and exploration, the uranium industry spent about N$80 million on social investments in 2024.
Governance that serves the owners (the public)
Galloway said pre-independence mining often ran as an enclave economy, while post-independence operations have become the backbone of regional economies.
He said Namibia’s NAMCODE, King IV, and ISO 37000/26000 position companies within society, with boards accountable to all stakeholders, including the public as ultimate owners of the mineral resources.
He cautioned against tick-box ESG, urging its application in a Namibian context with Ubuntu at the centre and corporate social investment focused on national infrastructure—schools, housing, health, and skills development.
Galloway said legacies should be built into national plans, coordinated across sectors, with mines anchoring and then handing over to other industries.
He said the government cannot close every social backlog alone (as NDP6 shows) and called on banks and insurers to increase their contribution alongside miners.
Show the work
Brown said the sector undersells its development impact and proposed an annual, sector-wide State of CSI / National Development Support report that tracks plots titled, homes electrified, skills developed, businesses formed, and land rehabilitated.
Galloway said media should be critical and fair, and he argued against legislating CSI, saying governance and coordinated action outperform rules that create perverse incentives.
The blueprint
As a blueprint, Dr. Brown urged the industry to pool resources behind catalytic projects that tackle root causes, and to plan livelihoods from day one of a mine’s life—a point Galloway reinforced.
Galloway, joined by Dr. Schneider, pressed for stakeholder-centric standards to be applied in a Namibian context, while Brown called for the urgent remediation of the most severely impacted legacy sites.
Both Galloway and Schneider emphasised the need for tight coordination among miners, the government, banks, and insurers to ensure the sustainability of social infrastructure.
To demonstrate progress, Brown advocated for an annual, public scorecard.
Done this way—the panel agreed—the wealth under Namibia’s feet becomes wealth in Namibians’ lives long after the last ounce is mined.
