Minerals Council South Africa recommits to women’s equity and inclusion in mining

Johannesburg, March 2026. The Minerals Council South Africa marked International Women’s Day by recommitting to advancing women’s rights, safety and equity with its refreshed Women in Mining strategy which has so far contributed to increased numbers of women in the sector.

Marking International Women’s Day and recognising ten exceptional women in the mining sector, the Minerals Council hosted an industry breakfast to share learnings, experiences and insights on how to move beyond compliance-driven equity and inclusion and to fully embed gender equality in organisational cultures.

The Minerals Council’s Women in Mining strategy, which was first adopted in 2020, was reviewed and refreshed in 2025, reducing the number of strategic pillars to five from seven. These pillars include creating safe, equitable and dignified workplaces, industry collaboration, value-chain transformation, and delivering broader societal impact.

Craig Miller, CEO of Valterra Platinum, is now the Chair of the Minerals Council’s Women in Mining Leadership Forum, taking over from Northam Platinum CEO Paul Dunne, who is now the President of the Minerals Council.
Through Minerals Council initiatives, member companies are addressing the issues of women-appropriate personal protective equipment, clothing and facilities, workplace cultures and are driving interventions to address gender-based violence through zero tolerance.
South Africa’ has embraced the theme for International Women’s Day of “Give to Gain”.

“Give to Gain reminds us that when we actively invest in women’s rights, safety, and leadership, we strengthen not only women—but society as a whole. The focus this year is clear: dismantling harmful attitudes, advancing economic equality, and confronting the scourge of gender-based violence,” says Shamini Harrington, Senior Executive Environment, Health, Employee Relations and Legacies.
Women representation in the mining sector has risen to 21% in 2025 from 17% in 2022. The sector employs about 470,000 people who earned R200 billion in 2025.

In a recent study, the Minerals Council noted that spending on human resources development in the sample group was R4.8 billion in a single year, tying in to the 2025 Women in Mining: Education and Development Heroes initiative.

“When we give, especially in education, training, development, coaching, and mentoring, we gain. We gain skills, confidence, capability, and leadership. We gain transformation, equity, and inclusion. And we take real action toward ensuring the rights of all women and girls to decent work in equitable workplaces,” says Mustak Ally, Head of Skills Development and Human Resources at the Minerals Council.
The Minerals Council and its members marked International Women’s Day by recognising ten peer-nominated women heroes for their outstanding contribution in the mining sector. The heroes initiative was launched by the Minerals Council to recognise women doing remarkable work in the mining sector and delivering peer-recognised differences in their fields.

“In mining, we often applaud the final output, the tonnages, the ounces, the delivery, the numbers. But today, we honour the people who build the pipeline of talented employees behind the targeted performance achievements. These are our women heroes who teach, train, coach, assess, mentor, and open doors, often quietly, consistently, and with extraordinary courage,” says Mr Ally.