Case study: National Research Foundation (NRF) study

Following the strike at Marikana in 2012, a multi-disciplinary study was commissioned with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) and National Research Foundation (NRF), funded by the then Xstrata, Impala Platinum Holdings Limited and Anglo American. The study sought to identify the underlying issues that led to the tragedy and to find solutions that can mitigate the risk of such an incident occurring again as well as finding sustainable solutions to some of the social challenges.

The NRF study was delayed and was only completed in November 2014. As a result, some of the findings may appear out of date in light of developments such as the implementation of the President’s Framework Agreement. An important issue during the research was the lack of union cooperation in the study, as a result of which no interviews were conducted with the workforce, one of the primary role players in the study.

Key recommendations point to a need for:

• Enhanced cooperation between stakeholders in dealing with social pressures in mining towns;
• Undertaking a review of government policy to foster an environment for development particularly with regards to SLPs, migrant labour and housing issues;
• Ensuring effectiveness of policy by designing and implementing monitoring and evaluation measures for enforcement of non-compliance;
• Aligning the policy of the DMR with the goals of the national development plan (NDP);
• Reviewing policy and practice on micro-lending and debt regulation; and
• Adopting a collective approach to dealing with all these issues.