Burkina Faso to Withdraw Mining Permits from Foreign Companies
Burkina Faso plans to withdraw mining permits from certain foreign companies in an effort to boost its own gold production, announced junta leader Ibrahim Traore on Saturday. However, he did not specify which permits would be canceled.
“We know how to mine our gold, and I don’t understand why we should allow multinationals to come and mine it,” Traore stated in a radio address marking two years since he took power in a coup.
Traore confirmed the intention to revoke mining permits but provided no further details or specifications regarding which companies would be affected.
Gold is Burkina Faso’s primary export, and frustration over a prolonged security crisis contributed to the junta’s rise to power in 2022. Since then, the government has severed long-standing ties with Western allies and has sought to establish closer relations with Russia.
Currently, operations in Burkina Faso include companies such as London-listed Endeavour Mining, Australia-based West African Resources, Russia’s Nordgold, and Canada’s Orezone Gold Corporation.
The operating environment has been complicated by escalating insecurity. Despite the junta’s promises to combat groups linked to Al-Qaeda and Islamic State, the country has experienced a severe increase in deadly attacks in 2023, with over 8,000 reported fatalities, according to the US-based crisis-monitoring group ACLED.
