In fulfillment of its annual obligations in line with section 34(a) of the Mines and Minerals Act of 2009, the Wongor Investment and Mining Corporation Friday the 19th August paid the sum of 273 million old Leones to Nimikoro and Nimiyama Chiefdoms in Kono District. The company also paid Le 480 million Leones to the same communities as its annual Community Development Agreement (CDA) fees as per section 139 of the Mines Act.
Speaking to the press, the twenty-plus years experienced Manager in the mining sector, the Wongor Mining Country Manager, Ing. Murtada Tunis said the current payment has brought its cumulative surface rent payment to 1 billion old Leones in just three years of operation.
He added that if the almost half billion old Leones now paid for CDA, and the 300 million paid for crop compensation, the company would have paid close to Le 2 billion.
He concluded that โif we are to add what we are spending to build the ongoing Community Health Clinic and also other Corporate Social Responsibilities made to the community in education, health, bridge infrastructures, churches, mosques, youths, and women, we will be worth of 3 billion old Leones. The records are there to show for it and that is just the beginningโ the Country Manager said, adding โWe have more plans for the community.โ
It could be recalled that in 2021, Wongor Mining made national headlines when it became the first company to take advantage of the strong bilateral relations between the Government of Sierra Leone and China when it invited Chinese medical experts at the 34 Military Hospital to provide free medical health care to the residents of its Primary Host Communities in both chiefdoms of its operations in the Kono District. Hundreds of residents, women and children, old and young, benefitted from the free medical services.
The Country Manager acknowledged that community challenges remain, as it is with any large scale mining company, but they are surmountable, he added. โTo be on the private side of this industry means you have excellent ability to handle difficult community issues in a professional manner that protects the investor and also provide opportunities for the locals,โ engineer Tunis added.
Concluding, Ing. Tunis said โOur objective is to differentiate ourselves by managing in a manner that optimizes the investorโs returns but also to ascertain that the communities in which we operate also have something to show for both in infrastructure and Human Capital Development. And this objective is also codified in our laws as wellโ, the manager added.
And these are the reasons why to a large extent we continue to have the full support of the chiefdom leadership and the landowners of our concession.
