As the mining sector in Africa advances its environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda, meaningful progress increasingly depends on strong long-term partnerships that embed sustainability into every operational decision.

SLR Consulting, which performs extensive mining-related work across Africa, spoke to Mining Weekly ahead of this year’s Investing in African Mining Indaba about how this journey requires deep collaboration with clients, communities and regulators to deliver practical science-based solutions that balance operational performance with environmental stewardship and long-term social value.

The company positions itself as a strategic adviser rather than a provider of standalone assessments, states SLR International environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) lead for Africa and the Middle East Dieter Rodewald.

“Our focus is on partnering with mining clients from the earliest possible stage in the exploration and development process, embedding sustainability into decision-making rather than treating it as a compliance exercise,” he says.

This integrated, partnership-driven approach, says Rodewald, reflects the evolving expectations facing the mining industry: stronger ESG performance, enhanced transparency, more resilient operations and demonstrably positive impacts in host communities.

With 4 500 people across 135 offices in 28 countries, SLR Consulting is on a strong growth trajectory, expanding its global footprint while ensuring deep local expertise.

Its African presence already spans South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Egypt and Morocco.

The Middle East, both as a region and in relation to African mining, is rising in strategic importance, says SLR mining sector lead for Africa and the Middle East Angus Bracken.

Following the recent opening of an office in the United Arab Emirates, SLR Consulting is expanding its presence across the Middle East.

“As part of our global restructuring over the past year, we have consolidated our African operations into a broader Africa-Middle East region,” says Bracken, adding that the consultancy has also organised its mining expertise into eight interconnected Communities of Practice spanning the full asset lifecycle – from transaction advisory and resource development, through mine development and operation into mine closure.

This structure, he explains, is designed to connect technical excellence with strategic foresight.

“To deliver meaningful advice from the start, we need a full range of skills to understand every step of a project, right through to closure.

“We have built our teams so that when we engage with a client we can provide guidance based on the full picture, not a constrained or isolated viewpoint,” he says.

This full lifecycle alignment has been critical in navigating some of the most complex environmental and social challenges facing African mines today.

Rodewald points to a recent project where certain associated facilities are within a protected area, where the presence of critical habitat initially appeared to be a major barrier.

“Our decade-long suite of multidisciplinary studies revealed a more nuanced picture,” he explains, adding that despite its protected status, the landscape had been heavily degraded over decades of slash-and-burn agriculture, charcoal production and climate pressures.

Rodewald notes that without intervention, the habitat that defined the area’s protected status could have disappeared within a decade.

“By truly understanding the ecological and socioeconomic systems at play, we are helping the client plan a restoration strategy that will aim at a nature-positive outcome rather than simply offsetting project impacts,” he says.

As sustainability expectations become more complex – from decarbonisation and climate resilience to digital monitoring and water stewardship – partnerships will increasingly shape industry outcomes, says Bracken.

He highlights four opportunity areas where SLR Consulting aims to strengthen its support for mining clients.

“Renewable-energy integration enables mines to accelerate decarbonisation and reduce costs by partnering with experienced independent power producers.

“The second area is digital transformation and AI, where tools such as digital twins and hyperspectral analysis are reshaping planning, monitoring and predictive modelling,” says Rodewald.

Thirdly, he notes that automation systems are enhancing safety and efficiency by reducing exposure risks and improving productivity.

Finally, advanced remote sensing is transforming environmental monitoring, rehabilitation planning and exploration targeting.