Paper short abstract:

The Eritrean Ministry of Energy and Mines has planned new mining policies aimed to attract investors in order to implement the socio-economic development. The policies have both positive and negative impacts in terms of manpower recruitment, wage system, industrialization, and urbanization.

Paper long abstract:

After a close examination of the bankrupt attempts to industrialize the mining sector made during the Italian colonialism in Eritrea, the paper focuses on the current situation wherein the Eritrean Government makes a point of the mining industry for its national development programs. The aim of the new mining law is to attract investors, and the Government should invest the profits resulting from the gold production in the socio-economic development of the nation. Currently there are about 25 foreign mining and exploration companies active in different areas: downright some places were characterized by artisanal or industrialized mining exploitation during the past, but not so profitable to be continued. In Eritrea the mining companies (junior companies) and the peculiar socio-political scenario (UN sanctions; Warsay-Yikeallo Development Campaign) recommend to procede carefully in the analysis, inasmuch besides the beneficial consequences such as job opportunities, development of marginalized areas, technology and skills improvement, and manpower training; there are negative outcomes due to recruitment of the manpower, the wage system, the distribution of the incomes deriving from the mining exploitation, the risk of monoeconomy that cannot assure the national food security.

In order to describe the connection among the sustainable development in mining industry development, the availability of manpower, the implementation in facilities and urbanization in mining areas, the paper is going to take into account the exploitation of the Eritrean gold fields, because they are considered the most profitable in terms of future incomes, and because of the potential negative effects on the population.