“Phase 2” of the project required the building Lubengele Tailings Dam, meaning the neighboring communities of Kawama and Ming’omba would need to be resettled. The Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) identified a number of development needs in Kawama, including the provision of basic infrastructure such as access roads, a health facility and water supply that including assistance for agriculture through the irrigation of community gardens. For Ming’omba, the plan identified infrastructure development needs including a clinic and additional classrooms at the primary school. The plan also indicated there was an urgent need to resolve issues related to social infrastructure such as education and health facilities for both communities.

 

The report also noted that Ming’omba depended on the production of charcoal for livelihoods and that, in a worst case scenario, the population might cut down all the area’s trees and then move in to forest reserves to gather wood unless alternative sources of livelihood could be developed. The report suggested measures to help people make a transition to agriculture should be put in place to provide an environmentally and economically sustainable livelihood. Although affected communities had not called attention to environmental issues, the report noted that prolonged deforestation around Ming’omba could emerge as an environmental concern.