The Department of Mineral Resources is a

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of the national

government of South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a parliamentary republic with three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary system. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa. Executive authority ...

which is responsible for overseeing the

mining industry of South Africa Mining in South Africa was once the main driving force behind the history and development of Africa's most advanced and richest economy. Large-scale and profitable mining started with the discovery of a diamond on the banks of the Orange River i ...

and the exploitation of the country's mineral resources. The department's origins lie the creation in the 1890s of the "" (Department of Mining) in the government of the

Transvaal Republic The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when it ...

. It has existed under its current name since 2009 when the Department of Minerals and Energy was divided and the

Department of Energy A Ministry of Energy or Department of Energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-relat ...

was created. the political head of the department, the Minister of Mineral Resources, is Ngoako Ramatlhodi and his deputy is Godfrey Oliphant. In the beginning of June 2014, during the platinum wage dispute between mining companies and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), Ramatlhodi threatened that the mineral resources department would withdraw from the negotiation process. An agreement between the sides was reached by the end of the same month. In September 2015, Mosebenzi Joseph Zwane was appointed as the Minister of Mineral Resources. The replacement of Ngoako Ramatlhodi was considered controversial and greeted with criticism from Labour Unions. On his appointment, Zwane urged a quick resolution to mining disputes and labour disruptions. In 2016, he was applauded for his resolution of Section 54 mine stoppage issues that had been negatively impacting mine production. In January 2017, during a judgement on the case between Aquila Steel and six respondents, which include the Minister of Mineral Resource and the department management, the Guateng division of the High Court of South Africa stated that the DMR stood in the way of private investment into the mining industry in South Africa, and failed to resolve central issues in a time effective and responsible manner, thus building a solid case for its own substitution. The department has its head office in the Trevenna Office Campus in Sunnyside, a suburb of the national capital

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the footh ...

. There are regional offices in

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Province ...

eMalahleni Witbank (), officially Emalahleni, is a city situated on the Highveld of Mpumalanga, South Africa, within the Emalahleni Local Municipality. The name Witbank is Afrikaans for "white ridge", and is named after a white sandstone outcrop where wag ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to De ...

Klerksdorp Klerksdorp () is located in the North West Province, South Africa. Klerksdorp, the largest city in the North West Province, is located southeast of Mahikeng, the provincial capital. Klerksdorp was also the first capital of the then Transvaal Repub ...

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

, Port Elizabeth,

Mthatha Mthatha , formerly Umtata, is the main city of the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality in Eastern Cape province of South Africa and the capital of OR Tambo District Municipality. The city has an airport, previously known as the K. D. Matan ...

, Cape Town,

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, ...

Springbok The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...

and

Welkom Welkom () is the second-largest city in the Free State province of South Africa, located about northeast of Bloemfontein which is the provincial capital. Welkom is also known as Circle City, City Within A Garden, Mvela and Matjhabeng. The cit ...

. The department had 1 099 employees in 2012, and received a budget of R1 394 million for the 2013–14 financial year. The department's chief inspector of mines is David Msiza.

References

Mineral Resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

Mining in South Africa Minderal {{SouthAfrica-gov-stub