JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – South Africa has the potential to be a mining giant again especially if it receives the kind of push that Tanzania is now receiving under its new President.

Speaking to Creamer Media’s Mining Weekly Online in a video interview on Tuesday after a recent visit to the East African country, Montero Mining & Exploration president Dr Tony Harwood was highly enthusiastic about how little time it has taken for the new Tanzanian President John Magufuli to “change the place totally”.

As a result, Montero was already looking around for more projects in Tanzania, to add to the Wigu Hill rare earth element project it already has there.

“You’ve got the man at the top saying great place this, come and invest, we’re going to clean our house out and make this an attractive destination” – and investors are already responding.

Highly experienced mineral discoverer and developer Harwood believes that similarly strong government sentiment could restore South African mining, which continues to be blessed with both the required skills base and the resources.

“It’s one of the foremost places on the planet,” said this doctor of geology – but investors are currently showing confidence in countries with far fewer resources but more stable outlooks.

When South Africa democratised under President Nelson Mandela in 1994, Harwood was part of a move that resulted in significant Canadian capital coming into South Africa and later raised capital in Australia for Universal Coal, which was recently sold to Coal of Africa.

He continues to hold thumbs for another turnaround in South Africa, which has already missed two major commodity cycles and risks missing a third.

“We’re also starting to see some change in Zambia and I hope we’re going to see some change here in South Africa,” he commented. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video).

Montero trades on Toronto’s TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol MON.