By Amin Kef Sesay
Chengli Mining Company, a company that is engaged in the mining of gold, has on the 28th January 2022 paid the sum of Six Hundred and Sixty Million Leones (Le660M) as Surface Rent by Chengli to Diang and Sambaya chiefdoms within the Koinadugu District, Northern Sierra Leone in line with Mines and Minerals Act of the country. It marked the third payment of surface rent paid by the company to the two chiefdoms.
Handing over the Cheques to the land owners, the Country Director of Chengli Mining Company SL, Fassally Tawarally, stated that the company will always adhere to the laws and regulations governing the country’s mining sector in the country, build the capacities of residents in the communities the company is operating and open up new opportunities of livelihoods especially for young people.
He furthered that as a large-scale mining license holder, they are required by law to put 0.01% of their proceeds into community development.
“In addition to that obligation, the company has pledged to provide water facilities for the two chiefdoms and commence the rolling out of a Five Hundred Million Leones Project meant for the construction of Chiefdom Court Barays, increase the number of scholarships to be awarded to deserving pupils as well as students residing in the mining communities and to continue the payment of the salaries of teachers,” he underscored.
Fassaly also stated that the surface rent was paid for acres of land that the company is utilizing in its mining operations and the beneficiaries in terms of percentages will be the Chiefdom Councils and other stakeholders within the two communities.
On his part, the Paramount Chief of Diang Chiefdom, Sheku Magba 111, disclosed how Cheng Li Mining Company paved their roads, awarded scholarships to over one hundred indigenous children, provided teaching and school learning materials to five hundred children as well paid the salaries of teachers, facilitated the installation of telecommunications network coverage, provided employment for hundreds of locals within the chiefdom and donated football gears.
Residents of Diang and Sambaya chiefdoms expressed gratitude over the payment of the surface rent also commending Cheng Li Mining Company for its various development interventions which they attested has somehow improved their lives.
They further testified that even before the commencement of operations by Chengli Mining Company they had already started benefiting from numerous developmental projects brought about by the company during its exploration stage.
The Community Liaison Officer of the National Minerals Agency (NMA), Henry Kamara, reaffirmed Government’s commitment to create the enabling environment for private sector investments to thrive. He called on residents to work with the company for the benefit of both the district and the company.
It could be recalled that since the 1930s when mining started in Diang Chiefdom within the Koinadugu district, no tangible and meaningful impact was created on the community in terms of development. However, many have attested that in two years, with the operations of Cheng Li Mining Company many development success stories could now be told.
