A 52-year-old miner has become an overnight billionaire in Tanzania, after selling the 2 largest Tanzanite gemstones ever found. For the rocks, the mineral ministry paid Saniniu Laizer the modest sum of $ 3.4 million or Ksh.340 million
Laizer discovered these rocks, roughly the size of an adult man’s forearm, in a Tanzanite mine in the north of the country, the only place in the world where this precious material is known to exist. The stones weigh 9.27 kg and 5.1 kg, respectively.
“There will be a big party tomorrow,” Laizer told the BBC when he was interviewed. The miner said he plans to invest part of the money earned in his community in the Simanjiro district of Manyara.
“I want to build a shopping center and a school. I want the school to be close to my home. There are many poor people here who cannot afford to take their children to school,” I added. In turn, Laizer received congratulations from John Magufuli, the President of Tanzania, in a call that was broadcast live on television.
“This is the benefit that corresponds to small-scale miners and shows that Tanzania is rich,” said the president. Since 2018, Tanzania allows miners who are not employed by any mining company to sell gems and gold directly to the government.
