In 2023, South Africa’s mining industry came under sharp scrutiny after Corruption Watch, a national anti-corruption watchdog, revealed that a staggering 38% of the 2,110 corruption complaints it received that year were related to mining – a significant jump from less than 25% in 2022. This dramatic increase signals a rising tide of public discontent and whistleblower activity in a sector long fraught with governance and compliance issues. With approximately 800 mining-related reports submitted by whistleblowers, concerns emerged that internal whistleblowing systems are either ineffective or distrusted, pushing employees to bypass internal channels in favour of external watchdogs.