FACTSHEET: MINERAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL 2025 (MRDB)

This factsheet by Natural Justice outlines the Mineral Resources Development Amendment Bill 2025 (MRDB) in South Africa, which seeks to reform mining laws to boost the economy and accelerate projects, particularly those involving minerals for clean energy.

• The Mineral Resources Development Amendment Bill 2025 (MRDB) intends to amend the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act of 2002 (MPRDA), while petroleum resources will be moved under the Upstream Petroleum Resources Development Act of 2024 (UPRDA). The Bill's objectives include introducing artisanal and small-scale mining permits, redefining 'community' and 'meaningful consultation', defining 'interested and affected parties', and implementing Section 24 of the Constitution regarding the right to a healthy environment.
• The MRDB aims to accelerate the pace of mining projects and increase the domestic processing of minerals within South Africa to avoid selling them raw to other nations, specifically targeting the unlocking of mineral wealth required for clean energy.
• The Bill is expected to impact rural and mining-affected communities regarding land rights, livelihoods, and environmental quality (water, soil, and air). A specific point of concern is that the Bill only requires 'meaningful consultation' rather than providing communities the opportunity for 'free, prior and informed consent'.

APA

Natural Justice (2025). FACTSHEET: MINERAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL 2025 (MRDB). https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Eng_Factsheet_MRDB-August-2025.pdf

Chicago

Natural Justice. FACTSHEET: MINERAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL 2025 (MRDB). 2025. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Eng_Factsheet_MRDB-August-2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Natural Justice |title=FACTSHEET: MINERAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL 2025 (MRDB) |date=August 2025 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Eng_Factsheet_MRDB-August-2025.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{naturaljustice2025factsheet, author = {{Natural Justice}}, title = {{FACTSHEET: MINERAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL 2025 (MRDB)}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Eng_Factsheet_MRDB-August-2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }