A journey of eight years in service of the mining community

NT NETWORK
Posted on 2008-12-12
Even as the Goan mining has grown impressively since the 1940s, it has seen industry become more environmentally and socially responsible. Over the years, many mining companies adopted the best practices in pollution abatement and environment conservation and built educational institutes, research centre and medical facilities. But these efforts, though genuine, were individual and sporadic. In order to ensure a coordinated and collective approach, the industry set up Mineral Foundation of Goa (MFG) in December 2000 to effectively address the social and environmental issues in the mining belt of Goa. It needed focused, personal and co-ordinated efforts from the top brass of the major mining houses such as Sesa, Dempo, Salgaocar, Chowgule & Fomento to conceptualize what is a unique entity in the country and the world. The Foundation was conceptualized to be a tri-partite organization with involvement of the Central & State Govt. and the Civil Society along with the mining industry in Goa. Registered as a not for profit society, the Foundation is funded entirely by the mining industry in Goa.
Operationalized in June 2001, the Foundation begun with two staff and small projects to reach out to the community and make place in their hearts. The going was tough with the efforts of the Foundation being looked at with apprehension. The focus obviously then was to win the trust of the people and convince them that the Foundation was serious about its efforts to serve the community with no hidden agenda. What has followed is the selection and implementation of a wide range of projects for the first three year under trying conditions. From the beautification of the famous Harvalem Waterfall, creation of public utility infrastructure, Health Campaign in schools, initiation of the book-bank and the Scholarship Scheme, restoration of various water-ways to research on bio-remediation of silt affected paddy fields, the Foundation went all out in its efforts to address a plethora of issues in the mining belt.
The efforts in these first three years bore fruits as the community started looking upto the Foundation as a partner in development of their villages, while the Government trusted it as an able organization to implement its important schemes. With more members joining in and recruitment of new staff, the activities of the Foundation received a shot in the arm. Field offices were opned with an aim to reach out more effectively to the masses. With faith bestowed on it from the community, the Foundation started experimenting with its activities. Thrust was given to inclusive decision making and participatory planning and implementation. The first watershed project was conceptualized in-house for the village of Mayem. This was the beginning of a new phase wherein the Foundation changed gears from Project to Programme mode. The process had more importance that the actual results. This strategy won the Foundation recognition in the form of selection was the Project Implementation Agency to implement the participatory watershed development programme under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of Goa.
Equal push was given to the Women Empowerment Programme, which had begun with only provision of skill-based trainings. The focus was gradually shifted from trainings to capacity building of the members and presently more that 1500 ladies are mobilized in more than 100 Self Help Groups.
Another feather in the cap of the Foundation was been the novel MFG-LABS Programme in partnership with Dr. Reddy’s Foundation. The programme saw the identification, screening and training of school and college drop-outs in employable skills. The programme trained 333 youth from the mining belt and managed to place them in various sectors at entry level jobs. Recognizing its value, the State Govt. has spread the programme to the entire state in partnership with the Rural Development Agency and is titled “GRAMEEN-LABS”.