With the focus on future-proofing at this year’s Investing in African Mining Indaba, SRK Consulting has emphasised the nurturing of skills as a vital foundation for building inclusion and long-term resilience in the continent’s mining ecosystem.
This is particularly true in West Africa, where gold production was estimated to have reached almost 12 million ounces in 2024. With gold’s extended price rally, potential for industry growth is high – especially in those countries on the Birimian gold belt. The region is also home to other minerals that are critical to the global energy transition, further fuelling Africa’s industrialisation through downstream processing and manufacturing.
What the Indaba highlights once again is that the future impact of the sector depends on how responsibly mining is conducted – from the technical excellence of its engineering through to environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. All aspects of mining are today subject to tighter and more demanding standards, and it is critical that all stakeholders collaborate in continuously raising the region’s skill sets accordingly, according to Ivan Doku, partner and Ghana country manager for SRK Consulting.
Foster local expertise
“We need to be building on the depth of mining expertise that exists in West Africa, which has been developed over more than a century of mining in countries like Ghana,” said Doku. “The region must foster local skill sets in response to changing standards and requirements both from government and clients.”
One of the most important recent industry benchmarks, for instance, has been the 2020 Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM). The breadth of GISTM requirements means that many more disciplines now need to be adapted or developed, he explained. This will be essential to the health and safety drive towards zero harm – another vital pillar of sector’s future.
“Leading mining companies have embraced the GISTM, and have been aligning themselves to the standard,” said Doku. “Irrespective of their host nation’s legislation, they are working towards standardising their compliance globally – so operations in West Africa are also having to come up to speed.”
Pressure on skills pool
This has placed a strain on the existing global skills pool in tailings management, and more specifically in GISTM compliance. Among the GISTM requirements that are difficult for local companies or service providers to fulfill from in-house expertise, for instance, is dam break analysis for a tailings storage facility (TSF).
“This requires specialised – and scarce – experience, insights and modelling to track where tailings could flow in a simulated dam breach,” he explained. “In our current tailings work in West Africa – which includes projects in Ghana and Burkina Faso – we apply the GISTM requirements.”
Tailings management, already a highly specialised field presenting a range of technical complexities, now also has to draw on experts in other disciplines – from community engagement to disaster management.
“The global shortage in these critical tailings-related skills does make it difficult for the mining sector at the moment, but at the same time presents great opportunities for young professionals in our region,” he said. “With the growing focus on local content in mining services and products, there is an urgent need to develop these skills locally.”
This also aligns well with mining’s future-proofing imperative, said Doku, by upskilling local young generations to contribute meaningfully to mining’s growth – and to embrace emerging technologies to develop cutting-edge solutions.
Time to grow
He acknowledged, though, that part of the challenge is the time it takes to develop experience. The basic building blocks of degrees and other qualifications can be earned relatively quickly, but the gathering of professional experience – with the right quality of mentoring and supervision – takes longer. Standards and regulations may then also demand minimum levels of experience for professionals to act as Engineers of Record.
SRK Consulting South Africa chairman Vis Reddy highlighted that identifying and nurturing local expertise has always been part of SRK’s business philosophy.
“In fact, the focus on local skills is built into our business model,” said Reddy. “SRK Consulting is owned by its staff, and its country practices also aim for majority ownership and management by local professionals.”
Global skills transfer
In terms of the exact requirements of the GISTM, SRK is continuing to build in-house capacity to meet the growing demand for tailings-related services in Africa. As an indication, the tailings team in South Africa has grown to around 100 staff over the past six years, he said.
“Our strategy has always been to leverage our global footprint by sharing knowledge and expertise between our practices worldwide,” he said. “Our tailings experience is therefore being passed from senior professionals to the younger cohorts. The demands placed on the industry by the GISTM creates significant career opportunities for young geotechnical and civil engineers, for example, as well as for scientists and engineers in fields such as ESG, water management and mine closure.”
The company’s focus in West Africa is on building the capability the Ghana practice, which was first opened in 2011. Reddy noted that it was vital to find and nurture talent across the age demographic, and to have experienced professionals to guide these new entrants.
About SRK Consulting
SRK Consulting is an independent, global network of over 45 consulting practices on six continents. Its experienced engineers and scientists work with clients in multi-disciplinary teams to deliver integrated, sustainable technical solutions across a range of sectors – mining, water, environment, infrastructure and energy. For more information, visit www.srk.co.za
