BAGUIO CITY – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) underscored that ninety percent of the gold being mined out from small-scale mines in the different parts of the Cordillera is being currently traded in the black market while only ten percent is being sold to the government’s financial institution that warrants the need for the aggressive move by concerned government agencies and local government to formalize the small-scale mining sector.
BSP North Luzon Region Office regional director lawyer Noel Neil Malimban said that the BSP only purchases gold from legitimate miners and those who are under the Minahang Bayan program to ensure that the gold being purchased comes from regulated small-scale mining operations.
He pointed out that what is best for the region’s lucrative small-scale mining industry is to legalize its operation through the mandated establishment of Minahang Bayan in strategic mineral-rich communities to help in perking up the country’s economy and improving the State’s gold reserves that forms part of the gross current reserves.
However, he claimed that formalizing this sector entails a multi-agency approach considering the key roles of various government agencies on the matter.
According to him BSP purchases gold from legitimate sellers, large-scale miners, gold traders and pawnshops
Under the BSP guidelines, gold buying stations established in the different parts of the country are mandated to sell gold, release initial payment based on initial assay and release final payment.
Last year, the Baguio-based North Luzon Regional Office purchased 144,199.12 ounces of gold which is 10.6 percent more than the 130,3877.08 ounces of gold purchased in 2023.
Malimban emphasized that one of the strategies employed by the BSP to contribute in increasing the purchase of gold from small-scale miners is to closely work with the Regional Development Councils (RDCs) to compel gold traders to secure accreditation with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to ensure the legitimacy of their respective operations.
In the Cordillera alone, there are only two Minahang Bayan sites that are operational, particularly in Loacan, Itogon, Benguet and Fedilisan, Sagada, Mountain Province while there are six others that are being processed for their future operations, aside from the upcoming operation of the Makilala Mining Corporation (MMC) based in Pasil, Kalinga.
The BSP official stated that the government is gradually gaining ground in its effort to compel large-scale and small-scale miners to sell their gold to the BSP at the prevailing world market rate based on volume and grade.
The Cordillera is one of the mineralized regions in the country where some large-scale and many small-scale miners are operating. A large population of miners in the region belong to the small-scale mining sector that remains to be unregulated thus depriving the government of the purchase of a substantial volume of gold.
Malimban expressed hope that the government’s campaign to formalize the operation of small-scale mining in the region will be realized to ensure the significant contribution of the region to the country’s economic growth that will benefit the people. By Dexter A. See
