Mozambique: Education support initiatives funded by MRM reach around 9,000 students in 2025

Namanhumbir, 3 March 2026– Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM) today shares the latest figures relating to the educational support the company has provided in the local vicinity of the mine, underscoring its commitment to education as one of the cornerstone pillars of its corporate responsibility initiatives. MRM’s community educational initiatives directly benefitted around 9,000 primary, secondary and university students in 2025 alone. Beyond new construction, MRM has rehabilitated two schools in Nanhupo A, and expanded Cuirio Primary School and Marrarange Primary and Secondary School.

Montepuez Secondary School, located in the town of Montepuez, also benefited from four additional classrooms and the construction and equipping of a fully fitted computer laboratory with 30 computers. The computer facility was funded by the Gemfields Foundation, the charitable arm of Gemfields, MRM’s parent company, and has benefited 6,831 students since opening in 2023. In 2025, the company’s education initiatives reached more than 2,000 primary school pupils and close to 7,000 secondary school students.

At the university level, MRM maintains partnerships with two higher education institutions in Cabo Delgado. Through its agreement with Universidade Rovuma, the company finances a scholarship programme supporting 30 students. Meanwhile, its collaboration with Universidade Lúrio focusses on environmental research and six-month professional internships, benefiting three students in 2025.

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MRM also funds skills development in vocational training. The company has supported the training of more than 900 technicians at the Namanhumbir Vocational Training Centre, which MRM funded and inaugurated in 2019. The centre is operated by the Instituto de Formação Profissional e Estudos Laborais Alberto Cassimo – IFPELAC.

Between 2019 and 2024, the centre delivered training programmes in electrical installation, civil construction, metalwork, civil painting, plumbing and heavy machinery operation, equipping young adults with practical skills to enhance self-employment opportunities and strengthen their competitiveness in the job market. The vocational training centre was vandalised in December 2024 and is expected to reopen in 2026, with new courses aligned to current job market demands, further expanding employment prospects for local youth. Montepuez Ruby Mining (“MRM”), located in north-eastern Mozambique, operates one of the most significant recently discovered ruby deposits in the world.

MRM is operated and 75% owned by Gemfields, with the remaining 25% held by Mwiriti Limitada, a Mozambican company. Gemfields is a world-leading coloured gemstone mining company. In addition to MRM, Gemfields is the operator and 75% owner of Kagem Mining (“Kagem”) in Zambia, a leading global emerald mine.

Gemfields has introduced a proprietary grading system and a pioneering auction platform, which have transformed the coloured gemstone industry. The company currently implements and invests in industry-leading policies, practices and infrastructure across all its operations; aligns itself with relevant industry standards to support its responsible approach; plays an active role in working groups aimed at modernising the sector; and raises the profile of African gemstones through its global marketing efforts. Gemfields funds projects to improve health, education and livelihoods in communities surrounding its mines, supports local conservation partners and established the Gemfields Foundation, its charitable arm, which expands the scale of the work already undertaken by Gemfields itself.

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