Angola Will Clamp Down On Illegal Mining - May.2008

The Angolan government plans to draft legislation which will clamp down on unregulated and illicit mining of diamonds, gold and uranium in the country.

The government is hoping to get revenue from the artisinal miners. Many of these miners illegally cross the borders from neighboring countries, like the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zamiba. The diamonds they find are usually illegally exported, costing the country money.

If the government does introduce laws which result in improved regulation of the artisanal miners it may take some of the pressure off large established mining and exploration companies which are prospecting for and mining diamonds in Angola. v