In the great mining depression of 1983, I survived by returning to South Africa to work in the mining industry. I will always be grateful to the people and the industry that made it possible for me to pay the mortgage at 18.6 percent and keep the Vancouver kids fed and clothed.
The current economic situation does not yet seem to be putting many North American mining industry folk out of work and we hope it stays that way. But still it is instructive to take a look at the jobs in mining in Africa, just in case you have to do what I did nearly 25 years ago.
As always my source of information is CareerMine. When I last looked there were some 1,091 mining-related jobs in Africa in their list. South Africa accounted for 814 of them, with but 47 in the Congo, 16 in Zambia, 16 in Namibia, 11 in Tanzania, 11 in Madagascar, 10 in Mozambique, 8 in Mali, 8 in Niger, and 7 in Guinea.
Across Africa, the jobs broke down thus by profession: Geology = 143; Mill & Metallurgy = 127; Environmental Science = 16; Mining Production = 45; Mechanical = 136; Engineering = 330; Management & Administration = 429; Technicians = 139; and Trade & Skill =143.
The point is there are many jobs listed, although I cannot vouchsafe for their current existence given the cuts the majors have been making of late.
As a kind of thought experiment I decided to see which job I would take.
I have to ignore the many jobs for mining engineers and mine managers. As a blogger, I am clearly not trained for that. I was born and brought up on the Witwatersrand, but I am told that it is kind of violent there just now, so I will avoid those jobs. Cape Town is relatively calm, so I chose the job for the Associate or Principle Engineer in Cape Town. All you have to do is this:
Plan and execute geotechnical & materials investigations; develop mining plans, technical reports, tenders, quotes & proposals. Manage all aspects of geotechnical & materials related project, e.g., investigating for infrastructure, dams, and roads.
I could do that and in Cape Town. Rather tempting. Certainly better than the job in Pretoria where I would be required to “conduct the design of infrastructure in the mining and industrial environments with specific application to waste disposal facilites.” Although I would probably be better qualified for that job, I do not favor Pretoria as a place to live.
The point is that there are many jobs for mining, civil, mechanical, electrical, and metallurgical engineers in South Africa right now. A reflection of the brain drain that brought them all to North America where they are currently competing for your job. In addition, there are many jobs for those without an engineering degree. The one I liked best was near Rustenburg, Mooinooi, and Brits. It is my favorite part of South Africa, although most would say I am mad in so thinking.
None of the job applications I accessed gave the name of the company seeking staff. I bet if you look deep you will find most of the consultants and all the mining houses looking for staff. The choice is yours and wide open.
To be honest, there are disadvantages in working in Africa. In 1983, it was fun. I spent three months in an apartment in Hillbrow and partied every night. You could not do that today. Then I moved out north and shared a house with Adrian and Barbara Smith. The only problem there was that Adrian insisted on trying to be a vegetarian. With lots of money and devoted servants, we ate so much cheese and nuts and drunk so much wine that we got fat. I called it off to loose weight.
Friends lately come from South Africa tell me it is very difficult to get anything done. First you have to cope with the staff shortages. Then there is the new red-black tape. Seems if you are white they won’t believe anything you say. Can’t really blame them considering what they were told when they were growing up. Then you have to get good at avoiding the crime: live in a secured compound, do not go out after dark, lock the car doors, and carry a big gun.
I cannot establish what the income is like or what it translates into in dollars. And even if I could, it would not mean much with currency fluctuations in daily swing. As always in Africa, goods are expensive, services are cheap. But one can drink only so much gin and tonic at sundown.
If you elect to take a job in Africa, let me know how it works out. I would be fascinated.
Thank you for your comments in working in the environment of Africa. As you were stating jobs are available for the engineers and metallurgical people but I have been employed for 30+ years as a chief assayer in the mining industry one year of it also being employed in the West Ivory Coast, Africa. I would love to be employed in my field, abroad but there seems to be no listing for assayers even though the mining industry must realize that we (assay Lab) are the heart of the operation. Without our services the geologists and metallurgists would have no idea of the values at their location in the mining industry.
Again a thank you to you and just thought I would submit this comment on to you.
13 March,2011
Allan,
Good day! Since that you have worked in one of the mining companies in Africa,as per your testimonies,I am asking for a favor in your behalf to help me land a job in the mining industry in Africa, as a mining engineer or shotfirer in the mine as my experties. or you can recommend me to the mining company where you work before.
Thanks for your help and more power.
Best Regards,
Jaime Dodoy
Qatar Mobile No.00974-66020139
Hi
Nice blogue you got here.
At the moment I am working for a junior in Europe. The company is bankrupt and got a job offer (not yet granted) in South Namibia. My mining industry experience is quite short, only 3 years as a exploration geologist involving the basics: soils, logging diamond and RC cuttings, geological/structural mapping and planning , etc… before that I was a PhD.student in regional and structural geology. I am pretty sure my salary will be shorter than my previous one and will e allocated in a very rough landscape (I am aware we are spoiled in Europe) and never been in African ground . Do you think I should try to stay at least a few months? will it make a big difference to my resume, being working in a real mine site? What do you think about the working condition in Namibia? On of my concerns is really if it worth keep going with the “mining industry and exploration” in the next years considering the recent commodities situation or if instead should move to another job/career .
Have a nice day
JB
Not a bad comment, however, as a South African Resident we have it good here. Salaries are on par with international rates and EVERYTHING is cheap. Like $1 for a beer, $120 000 for a good house. Crime is nowhere near as big a problem as you may think. You can still get eanything done a world class standard and cheap. And then there is our world leading banking industry, IT and other tech services. And yes, we get all the global rugby……I have done a load of international projects in the last 5 years and SA is still tops!
JB,
I lived and worked in Namibia as a CSM summer student back in 2004. If I were you I’d grab the opportunity with both hands – it’s an amazing place and is relatively safe for Westerners… While I was there it was often referred to as “Africa Lite” due to the relative stability and safety compared to some other African nations.
I’m guessing you’ll be based in Swakopmund or Walvis Bay, the former of which is on the North-South tourist route for many European and American safari travellers.
As for “staying more than a few months” thats only a decision you can make – with the way the industry is at the moment I wouldn’t be chopping and changing jobs unless I really needed to. Mining is also in the blood, ask yourself if you really want to stay in the industry as there will likely be tough times ahead for most of us!
Hope this helps – drop me an e-mail if you want to know more about living in Namibia.
DM
My advice: go to namibia not for the money but for the experience.It is paradise for geologists and the most unspoilt nature reserve per se. There is one danger: you may never want to leave.Good luck getting your permits.
My advice: Do some research on the company you will be working for. What is their background, where have they worked, and how have they worked with the community to reach common goals, by supporting the community, employing locals as much as possible, and preventing contamination of community water sources and air which are the foundation of livelihood for hundreds, potentially thousands of people. What laws have been passed to ensure responsible extraction of resources etc. More often than not, multinational companies are not obligated or enforced by law to comply to mining regulations in their home countries, and many developing countries do not have appropriate standards to ensure responsible practices by these compnaies and the protection of their citizens. For example, Entre Mares, a subsiduary of Glodcorp (a Candian-based gold mining company) in Honduras has contributed to cyanide and arsenic poisoning of their drinking water resources, of which, Entre Mares refused to pay a fine for since it did not agree with findings of the Ministry’s environmental tests.
You could quickly find yourself in a moral dilemna in which you find it difficult to remove yourself while contributing to the loss of human life.
Know what youre getting into and agree with company practices. Take advantage of the great experience, but make sure it is not at the expense of the lives of other people who are not at your advantage to pick up and move.
I have a master’s degree in Geology (with concentration in Hydrogeology) in the US, plus over 3 yrs of experience. I am trying to get a job in Africa. Can you guys help me with contacts/companies/links etc. Thanks.
Nathaniel
Try this website
http://www.jobs4mining.com/
cheers
Micky
P.S. Keep up the good work Jack, excellent blog
nice blog jack its good to interact with other “miners”. i am a metallurgy person with abt 4yrs experience in the gold and platinum industy and a diploma in mineral prossing and extractive metallurgy . i am thinking of searching for a job in namibia any help/contacts/links
tc
Thank you all for your opinions and advices. Thy’re helpfull to you set my mind clearer, have chosen to pursue the Namibian experience.
Let’s hope 2009 will get better than it looks
JB
I am a qualified metallurgist with over 10 years experience in gold, base metals and research and development. I am looking for work in South Africa, Namibia and Tanzania
I am a Director of Research for a headhunting firm based in the UK. We are currently handling several mining managerial positions. If you speak Portuguese, then I would very much like to talk to you.
Juan
Hello interested Job Seeker,
I am Smith of the Immigrant Department of African Chambers
of Commerce. I am the Public Relations officer of the department.
I write to you prospective job Seeker of our On-going Immigrant Visa program tagged Live and Work in Africa .This program provides job opportunity for 30 immigrantworkers from Asia and Europe Africa and American continents here in Africa.
This is the 3rd of its Kind since its inception in 2006. So if you are interested, then write back to me so that I can intimate you more about the programs and the qualifications required.
Sincerely Yours
Smith Dada(PR Immigrant Visa Department African Chamber of
Commerce And Industry)
I am a qualified fitter machinist with 2 years experience on a quarry mine, where I worked on jaw crushers, conveyor belts and structures, but with a total of ten years as fitter and turner in heavy engineering environment. Am looking for a job as a fitter machinist or turner anywhere in Africa.
I am a qualified Fitter and Turner Machinist now fully trained as a mechanical engineer with electrical background,I am looking for mining jobs in Africa and the Middle East.I have 20 years experience in that trade, and in mining,sawmilling ,food and beverage industry
Ahmed may be right but I have friends working in Australia so I can not agree with him 100%. However , I have a complaint with recruitment agents.It seems most of them have placed a thounsand more whites than other races and trust me have worked wih some professionals.Their work do not reflect what is alleged on CVs.Some are really brilliant and proffessional. Others have wondered why and how they were recommended.
Have worked for over 30 years on base metal, chrysotile asbestos and gold mines in Zimbabwe as geologists and wish to work elsewhere in Southern Africa. Do not have any particular preferrences.
lzm
Hi my name is Wendy and am currently looking for a job as a Geologist. I have 6 months experience of gold mine and 3 months experience in an engineering geology company doing soil investigation
Wendy, are you still looking, how much experience do you have? Can you email me a CV? I think this may be a little on the senior side, but I’d still be interested in seeing your details if you are looking.
nick@bridgeexecutive.com.au
hi sir,
i m working in zimbabwe right now, i m looking for job,i don’t know any thing about mining.
pl reply me sir
We have a client that is looking to hire a geologist for an initial short term project (8 weeks) in East Africa, then moving to a more permanent situation when the development progresses.
Please email interest to – nick@bridgeexecutive.com.au -
I have an
experience and effort in gold exploration in all stages and mining production, concerng grade control supervision, i have an diploma of geologoy and mineral exploration. Dominic.
I have client that is looking for senior Maintenance Manager to work in Zambia with a proven track record of working in a Contractor environment in a remote location maintaining a large fleet of mining equipment.
Fleet consists of Hitachi and Leibher Excavators and Shovels, Komatsu 930E and 685E,Cat 793 and 777 Dump trucks. If you have the relevant experience then please contact me ASAP on -
nick@bridgeexecutive.com.au
Am Edson, am looking for a new job wherever it’s available, i’ve 3years diploma in Geology and mineral exploration, i have a six month experince in mining industry where i perfomed Grade contral, ore dilution, geotechnical wall and surface mapping, ore spotting, and other many as they appear on my Cv. Please help me to get a job.
qualified fitter machinist but have 10 years working on Crushers and screens. I have 15 yrs post Apprenticeship and iam looking for a job in AFRICA especialy in Zimbabwe,Zambia,TansaniaOR Malawi
I’ve got a MO ticket-got 15 years experience in deep level mining -production-looking for a job in Africa.
I’ve got a MO ticket-got 15 years experience in mining.
Looking for a job in Africa
I’ve got a MO ticket worked for De Beers for 25 years, moved to Zambia have 5 years opencast mining experiance in Coper mines,(Production, Drilling and Blastin, Dewatering) , presently in Mauritania looking for a job in Zambia or Botswana
I’m a Zimbabwean looking for a job of petrol and desiel machenic in any country.i do have deploma without exprnc.i study it in South Africa,i tryd every way to look for a job but no one is whilling to help me so pliz any country can u help me,u can reply me at this numbers 0027726464442,or email at d.d.sonyana@gmail.com thank you
I have done tool engg. and got a 7 year experience working with good companies. After recession it was hard to get a real type of job. So, heard that the govt. is bringing new employment plans in Africa that’s a good one for the crowd they will get a jobs and I was hoping too.
Employment in africa
I have a Training management diploma with 11 years experience in Training and 22 years in Metallurgy. I have worked in Platinum, Gold and chrome plants as well as Open pit. I am looking for a training position in Africa. I am also a registered assessor, Moderator and Skills Development Facilitator
I am seeking for shotfirer job in Botswana,mauritania and Zambia
I have 17 years experience in driling and blasting.I have worked in coal,quarry and gold mines in Tanzania and I would like to work in these three contries; Zambia, Mouritania and Botswana.Iam also working as snr. shotfirer at Orica mining in North mara mine Tanzania, owned by African Barrck Gold.
I am a pro-active young man aged 25 who has attained a BSc Honours Degree in Metallurgical Engineering with the University of Zimbabwe.
I do believe that my personal attributes will be to the advantage of any company with me retaining quality professionalism.
Thank you in advance for your time. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. I would appreciate the opportunity to review my qualifications in more detail and will contact you whenever you wish me to.
I.M a fitter and turner living and working on the Eastrand. Gauteng . There are some great contract work in Madagaskar and zambia .Would like to work there but South Africa is a dangerous country to leave your wife and children alone for 2or3 months at a time
I am Laud Christian Ainoo and a Ghanaian currently working with African Underground Mining Service as electrical supervisor and offering a masters degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineeering
.Moreso a holder of Diplo in Mine Electrical Engineering at University of Mines and Technology School of Mine which is located in Ghana.You can check my profile at facebook also you search google Christian Laud Ainoo.