Tanzania has built a wall in the north of the country to deal with illegal mining and trading activities around its Tanzanite gemstone.
The country’s President John Magufuli officially inaugurated what is called the Great Mirerani Wall which he ordered the military to build last September.
The military built the wall, 24km long, “to control illegal mining” around the blue-violet tanzanite gemstone only rare in Tanzania.
A statement from the Tanzania presidency last year said about the wall that “All tanzanite gemstones will be controlled and will pass through one gate and he (Magufuli) ordered the (central) Bank of Tanzania to take part in the tanzanite buying trade”.
The government had in the past accused mining firms of cheating Tanzania out of its fair share of mineral wealth through tax dodging and smuggling, allegations they hotly deny.
The wall will have security cameras and checkpoints with Magufuli saying “Even if someone swallows some tanzanite gemstones, they will be detected at the proposed checkpoint”.
