For the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Mipymes (MICM), Víctor -Ito- Bisonó, Latin America has large and important natural resources, especially when compared to other regions of the world, which is why he points out that it is necessary to face the challenges of carrying successfully the correct management of its natural resources, a management that promotes the inclusive and sustainable development of its societies, in a changing economic, social and environmental context.
“Minerals, as well as soils, forests, rivers, among other natural assets, represent an important basis for the growth of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, since they generate ecosystem services with broad benefits,” said Bisonó.
He said that this economic progress of the countries of the region has been very marked in recent years, which poses important challenges to achieve a path of sustained growth in the long term and face the challenges of development.
In line with the industry, innovation and infrastructure target of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, he said that investment in infrastructure and innovation are key drivers of economic growth and development.
By participating today in the XII Conference of Ministries of Mining of the Americas (Camma), indicated that, without questioning the evidence that human activities and mining exploitation have a significant impact on the environment, it is also true that, far from “abstracting ourselves from these initiatives, societies must seek alternatives to mitigate efficiently any adversity that these tasks may generate and to be able to receive, without greater burden of collective conscience, the considerable benefits that they generate both for the communities that carry out mining activities and for the nation in a broad sense”.
He explained that the mission of government decision makers is essentially to find sustainable solutions between the environment and the benefits provided by the mining.
“It is therefore, in simple terms, to more than reasonably level what is found in the ground and what nature reserves for us underground. There, in the ground, more than minerals, many of them of great commercial value , there are opportunities for qualified work; there are more than decent wages for employees; there is a circular economy, robust in terms of supply in the broad sense,” he pointed out.
Furthermore: “Vocational technical training lies among many other beneficial opportunities for societies and countries. It makes a vigorous industry that rises with hope and adorns itself with prosperity and development.”
Bisonó detailed the data from the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic, which highlights that, in 2020, the mining contributed to the national gross domestic product (GDP) about 89,231.2 million pesos, equivalent to 2.0%.
“The challenge of converging the economic prosperity with the environmental sustainability and with the canons of defense of nature and our environment, sometimes it becomes steep, but it is a task of mandatory approval”, said Bisonó.
He added that today, when there is greater awareness of environmental liability and its importance, not only reversing the damage caused in the past but also the creativity of mining, “we have two great allies: on the one hand, technology, which allows mining activity to be carried out with a significant reduction in the collateral damage caused, and on the other hand, the marked awareness of the actors in the mining sector who constantly review their processes in an attempt to make their operations more efficient”.
He specified that in each deposit that has a vocation for exploitation without damaging the environment, he sees more than the payment of taxes.
“Particularly I see new plant engineers who come from these communities, often humble; I see entrepreneurs who can supply goods or services to said companies; I see full employment; I see the health sector; I see forests surrounding the mines; I see the reduction in crime, in short, I see virtue in an industry that always adds value, and when it coexists with the uncompromising protection of the environment that belongs, not to us, but to our children and grandchildren and to future generations” , highlighted the head of the MICM.
In the Camma the ministers of mining of 23 governments of the Americas and the Caribbean. Participating in the activity are the Vice Minister of Mines, Miguel Díaz, and the General Director of MiningRoland Munoz.
