Implementing social and labour plans in South Africa: Reflections on collaborative planning in the mining industry

Phia van der Watt and Lochner Marais

Resources Policy, 2021, vol. 71, issue C

Abstract: Collaborative governance and planning have become the norm in governance circles. The mining industry has also embraced collaborative efforts and in South Africa, mining companies must submit such a collaborative plan to obtain a mining licence. This paper examines this attempt of collaboration between local government and mining companies in Rustenburg South Africa. Mines and local governments must collaborate and align the Social and Labour Plans (SLPs) of mining companies with the Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) of municipalities. Simplistic assumptions and the narrow vision associated with collaborative planning, alignment and integration are questioned. The regulatory framework does not facilitate positive relationships or suggest procedures to ensure joint planning, mutual accountability and transparency. The formal system of collaboration is too complex for the available capacity and represents a reluctant partnership with high levels of distrust and a lack of accountability. The evidence shows an inability to improve relationships and continued disruptions and damage to the local community.

Keywords: Mining; Collaborative governance; Corporate social responsibility; Social and labour plans (SLPs); Public-private partnerships (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301420721000015
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:71:y:2021:i:c:s0301420721000015

DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.101984

Access Statistics for this article

Resources Policy is currently edited by R. G. Eggert

More articles in Resources Policy from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().