Financial Provisions for Mine Rehabilitation and Mine Closure in South Africa

Mining has shaped South Africa’s history and remains central to its economy, contributing 6% of GDP, employing nearly half a million people, and positioning the country as a global leader in key minerals such as platinum, chromium and manganese. Spread across 250 mines and intertwined with the lives of more than six million South Africans, the sector underpins livelihoods but also leaves a profound legacy of social and environmental damage, including land degradation, water pollution and health risks from decades of extraction. Post-apartheid policy interventions are a step in the right direction – but the limited examples of successful mine closure and rehabilitation over the past 3 decades demonstrates its inadequacy. While post-apartheid policies have sought to address these impacts, limited progress in mine closure and rehabilitation — and entirely unsatisfactory implementation of Social and Labour Plans — highlight persistent gaps in ensuring that the sector distributes its benefits more equitably. As South Africa pursues a just transition amid growing demand for critical energy transition minerals, the challenge is not only environmental but deeply political and developmental: to move beyond rehabilitation, address historical inequalities, rebuild local economies, and place mining-affected communities at the centre of sustainable, inclusive futures.

This publication outlines the country’s mine closure and rehabilitation policies, reviews the scale and types of financing allocated to these efforts, and examines why they have fallen short—and what this means for achieving a truly just transition. It offers a timely analysis of the policy, financing and reform priorities needed to place mining-affected communities at the centre of a more equitable and sustainable future.