Hon Chairperson, hon Minister, director-general, deputy directors-general, staff and hon members, we have to unlock the wealth in the ground of our country to the benefit of all our citizens. We need to grow this industry in order to create decent, safe and permanent jobs for South Africa. We have to turn around the relative decline of the past few years, with diamonds taking a blow, and become more internationally competitive in this regard. We have noticed growth in the local industry.
Our hon Minister and her team are doing just that, by collaborating in trust and taking steps to transform the industry to become a crown jewel of our country, and to build a stronger economy. The bar has been raised and the budget estimate of just over R1 billion reflects that. We have also noticed that the department is doing more with less money. We commend them for their work and especially for the fifth consecutive unqualified audit opinion. We also thank the Minister and her department for this budget preparation and wish them everything of the best for the rest of the year ahead.
We agree with the Minister that transformation is vital, and that the industry still has a long way to go. We shall keep a keen eye on developments in this regard.
Together with environmental representation, we also need to take a closer look at transforming the industry to have more value added here in South Africa as far as possible. New avenues should be explored to have secondary industries turning more of our raw materials into higher-value products that could earn more foreign exchange for our country and create jobs for domestic labour.
More technology products need to be developed and produced here in South Africa. As a leading mining country, our skilled and experienced workers are drawn to exploration and operations all over the world. With this pool of knowledge, we could surely start a secondary industry to feed some of the global mining needs and develop new applications that would add to the export value of all these mines utilising our people power.
We also have highly skilled people working on seismic and other information technology that could be expanded. We therefore welcome the allocations for research, geosciences and seismic understanding. This is not just to understand and prevent landfalls, but also to add to a safer working place for our much-valued workers. We do not only develop and train workers in various ways, but we also really care for them. That is the work of the ANC government.
We welcome the dedication and commitment to the health and safety of our mining workers of whom we still lose too many every year due to fatalities and disabling injuries. Every year more than 150 are killed, but we also have a very worrying annual figure of hundreds who suffer serious injuries that render them unable to continue their work in the industry.
We accept that the mining environment is risky, but we should also do everything possible to limit the dangers and exposure of our workers to these ills. Therefore, the Minister's campaign of zero harm to workers, other people, communities, or property around the mines is indeed a step in the right direction, as is improving compensation.
Through regulation, through raising standards in the industry and through deliberate attempts to raise safety awareness, we have seen improvements and steady advances in stabilising the environment and protecting people from harm. We have to increase our efforts, as we agree that any fatality is one too many. Every minor injury or preventable disease erodes the productivity of our industry.
We also welcome the no-nonsense stance of the Minister and her department to end and bring to book those involved in illegal mining operations. Besides robbing organised mining by stealing from them, they also enter a specialised environment that is hazardous to uncontrolled operations and could lead to very tragic consequences, as we have witnessed.
People risk their lives in unlawful enterprises that place the jobs of other workers under pressure. These criminals indeed also steal jobs from honest workers. Getting the criminal justice system and other departments to assist in this matter is supported. We also welcome improved enforcement and prosecution combined with compliance inspections.
We have to broaden the base of mining and make the most of our mineral wealth. This means making it possible to prospect and mine. We therefore welcome the Minister's determination to halve the time to process applications for rights. We also welcome the Minister's resolve to give more people a real opportunity to benefit from mining and guard against fronting and other misrepresentations. The department is also commended for channelling almost half of its expenditure to historically disadvantaged South Africans.
With our planning to wind down operations and to rehabilitate the environment to reduce and prevent leaching or spillage into the water, we also need to concentrate on the end of life for a mine or mining in any area.
Too often, we see decay, slums or ghost towns after the mine owners move out. This leaves many people desperate for jobs. Of late, mining villages have been turned into retirement opportunities, but a lasting and sustainable solution must be found to have the benefactors contributing to the support of host communities and those left behind when operations cease, especially on the West Coast. Exploiting without putting in place a lasting legacy is not on. We need only look at other areas to see that people suffer after the mines close.
We mine almost 60 minerals, I understand. This includes a number of minerals also taken from the earth here in the Western Cape. Many residents believe that there are no mines in our province. Then there are special breeds of people hell bent on not allowing any mining activity anywhere in the Western Cape. With a special elite looking narrowly at their own interests, these people have benefited and amassed reserves to fight, and they cite many reasons why development would spoil and denigrate the Western Cape, its mountains, winelands and other pleasing features. They are totally opposed to any development aimed at unlocking the wealth of the land. All they care for are their own pieces of land. We have heard accounts of people who make it their job to oppose developments. In one instance, the owner offered to retract his objection at a handsome price of half a million rand. This amounts to extortion. Some even object to developments while they themselves are into sand and aggregate mining on adjacent properties. Perhaps we should look at different mechanisms to identify and adjudicate exploration and mining applications, especially with a view to supporting emerging mining companies who cannot afford long and drawn-out fights to overcome short- sighted objections. Perhaps the envisaged single, state-owned mining company could play a role here, Minister.
We wish the department well in organising the first international geological congress on the continent in 2016. Lastly, let me thank the Minister, the members of the committee, the director-general, the deputy directors-general, the staff in the Ministry, the department and the committee secretary Ms Grace Dinizulu for a sterling job done so far. We support the Budget Vote. I thank you. [Applause.]