Investment viability and sustainable formalisation in Zimbabwe’s artisanal and small-scale gold mining: a value-chain perspective

Abstract Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) plays a significant role in Zimbabwe’s mining economy, contributing an estimated 65% of national gold production while supporting large numbers of rural livelihoods. Despite this importance, the sector remains characterised by persistent informality, low productivity, environmental degradation, unsafe processing practices, and limited access to formal finance and markets. This study examines Zimbabwe’s ASGM sector through a systems-based value-chain perspective to analyse how structural inefficiencies undermine investment viability and constrain sustainable formalisation outcomes. Drawing on qualitative policy analysis and secondary data, the study integrates value-chain analysis with a qualitative investment viability perspective to examine interactions across exploration, extraction, processing, marketing, finance, and governance. The findings show that technical, institutional, financial, and market-related weaknesses reinforce one another across the mining system, creating a persistent cycle of low productivity, revenue leakage, financial exclusion, operational risk, and environmental harm. Informality therefore emerges not simply as a regulatory failure, but as a rational response to mining systems that often fail to provide economically viable conditions for formal participation. The study positions investment viability as a necessary precondition for sustainable formalisation and argues that coordinated improvements in geological support, processing efficiency, market access, financial inclusion, and governance coordination can simultaneously strengthen productivity, reduce operational risk, and improve incentives for formal participation. While focused on Zimbabwe, the analytical approach offers broader relevance for resource-dependent economies seeking more sustainable, inclusive, and economically resilient ASGM sectors.