Zimbabwe is moving to tighten its grip on mining profits, unveiling plans to claim a 26% free-carry stake in all new mining ventures while negotiating similar stakes in existing operations. The policy, part of a broader push for resource nationalism across Africa, seeks to address long-standing disparities in how mining wealth is distributed and ensure a greater share of profits flows into local hands.
“We need to move to a level where we reach 26% shareholding in most of the big projects,” said Pfungwa Kunaka, Secretary for Mines, in an interview with Bloomberg. “A lot of these things would take negotiations with the investors that are on the ground.”
Kunaka declined to explain how the government would finance its acquisition of stakes in existing mining operations, saying details would be released at a later date. The policy, set to take effect next year, builds on Zimbabwe’s current 15% free-carry shareholding in some ventures, including Karo Resources, a platinum miner, according to the company’s website. 
The push for greater state involvement reflects a growing trend across Africa, where governments are seeking a larger share of the profits from commodities such as gold, lithium, and platinum. Zimbabwe is home to significant reserves of all three, with major operators including Zimplats, Anglo American Platinum’s Unki Mine, and RioZim.
Yet achieving the proposed 26% shareholding may prove challenging. Existing mining agreements, often forged under investor-friendly frameworks, cannot be altered unilaterally, Kunaka acknowledged. “Obviously, when you have decisions which were made some years back… you cannot just willy-nilly go and change that,” he said. “It takes negotiations.”
The government has yet to outline which mining assets would qualify for the new ownership requirements or the minimum size of investments that would be affected. Observers are watching closely for details, as the policy’s implementation could determine its impact on foreign investment in Zimbabwe’s critical mining sector.
