Governor Applauds RDMC For Prioritizing Local Talent In Reko Diq Project

Sumaira FH Published July 17, 2025 | 10:50 PM

QUETTA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th Jul, 2025) Governor Balochistan, Jaffar Khan Mandokhail, praised the Reko Diq Mining Company (RDMC) for its commitment to empowering local youth through international training and employment opportunities in the Reko Diq project.

The Governor expressed his views during a meeting at the Governor House with young Balochistani engineers who recently returned from an 18-month on-the-job training program at Barrick’s Veladero mine site in Argentina.

The graduates are part of RDMC’s International Graduate Development Program 2023, which equips promising engineers with global exposure and technical expertise. Led by Country Manager Zarrar Jamali, the RDMC delegation briefed the Governor on the project’s progress and outlined social welfare initiatives underway for the region.

Jamali highlighted that 74% of the current workforce at Reko Diq comprises employees from Balochistan.

He also shared that another batch of 18 engineers has been sent for training at Barrick’s operational mines in Argentina and Zambia, further strengthening the local talent pool.

The young engineers shared their global work experiences with Governor Mandokhel, expressing readiness to contribute to the development of the Reko Diq project.

The Governor lauded RDMC’s focus on skill development and termed its policy of prioritizing local employment “a welcome and strategic move.”

“Initiatives like these transform local youth into national assets and foster public ownership of development projects,” he remarked.

Governor Mandokhel reiterated that Balochistan’s rich natural resources, if harnessed responsibly and inclusively, could dramatically improve the province’s socio-economic landscape.