Towards the third quarter of this year, Minister Shabangu and I, in partnership with the industry, will launch the National Mining and Biodiversity Guideline. These guidelines provide the mining sector with a practical, user-friendly tool for integrating biodiversity considerations into planning processes and managing biodiversity during the operational phases of a mine, from exploration through to closure. In pursuit of South Africa's developmental pathway, a shared vision and the common goal of sustainability have emerged as strong drivers of industry values and societal behaviour. South Africa's mineral endowment implies that mining and the environment will continue to interact and will need to walk this path together to achieve prosperity in a sustainable environment. It is therefore in the spirit of co-operation that these guidelines have been developed, so that South Africa's incredible biodiversity and life- supporting ecological processes are not compromised, nor our ability to derive sustainable growth and development from its incredible mineral wealth.