Management of mining resources: "The Burkinabè government is on the right track", says Jonas Hien, Program Director of the NGO Orcade

2023-05-15 08:17:16

Lhe authorities of the Transition wish to bring added value to mining production in Burkina Faso. This, according to their understanding, involves providing the country of Upright Men with a gold refinery plant and a fine coal processing plant. In the opinion of the Director of Programs of the NGO Orcade, Jonas Hien, an expert in mining issues, this political will is a good thing, because, he says, applying good governance will allow the country to derive the maximum financial benefit. yellow metal. He gave his lecture on these major issues on April 19, 2023, in his office in Ouagadougou. Read instead!

L’Economiste du Faso: What do you think of the government’s idea of adopting a new Mining Code, in order, he says, to allow Burkina Faso to derive the maximum revenue from mining production?

Jonas Hien (Director of the program of the NGO Orcade): We see a political will to bring about significant changes in the mining sector, in particular, the Mining Code. For us, that’s a good thing. A law is in essence dynamic after a certain number of years of implementation, it is good to always revise it, because the world stakes evolve quickly. If the government finds shortcomings at some point, it is advisable to revisit the law, in order to derive maximum benefit from it, without jeopardizing the interests of investors. This revision of the Mining Code, if it took place, is in line with our expectations. Certain provisions of the 2015 Mining Code are no longer in line with current global issues. We ourselves, at one point, wanted the Mining Code to be revised.

We have no doubt that you have been approached in connection with the revision of the Mining Code, so, as an expert in mining issues, what do you want to see changed?

Things don’t work out that way. We must revisit the Mining Code so as to see with the issues of the moment, what should be brought new. Nevertheless, in the new Mining Code, we wish to see the concretization of the sharing of mining production. You have recently seen that the authorities of the Transition proceeded to a requisition of gold on certain mining sites; because as mining countries, we do not have a gold reserve, hence this government requisition. Such a situation should make us think, so that in the next Mining Code, the actors try to see what provision could be put in place to allow the Burkinabè state to have a gold reserve. National sovereignty requires moving towards such actions.

As part of the Transition’s emergency program, the government validated, on April 5, 2023, a project to build a gold refinery in Burkina Faso before 2024. What could be the added value of a gold refinery for the country?

If the government intends to have a gold refinery before 2024, it has certainly paved the way for this to be a reality. Regarding its added value in the national economy, which is obvious, Mali has a gold refinery, Ghana too, as well as other African countries. The state needs to think about how it will work in the long term, which implies that the mines will operate permanently, so that raw gold is available at all times. The upcoming Mining Code should see what mechanisms to put in place so that mining companies can refine all or part of the raw gold in Burkina Faso. The most important thing is that the State, through this gold refinery, can allow Burkinabè to see the added value. Otherwise the need to have a gold refinery is not to be discussed. It is to be hoped that with this plant, future governments will have the same commitment and the same vision; because what prevents Africa’s economic take-off is the perpetual questioning of certain good decisions implemented by previous governments. We must not ignore the international environment, because certain powers will not see favorably the fact that Burkina Faso wants to acquire a gold refinery. It is not excluded, on the international level, that powers can carry out sabotage work to prevent the factory from operating; for, gold refined abroad saves money for these countries. There are countries that live from the refinery and, as in Africa, unity is the least shared with less virtuous governance, sabotage happens quickly and the factory closes. The idea is very good, now it must be surrounded by safeguards combined with good governance so that the country can derive added value from it.

In addition to this major mining project, the government is announcing the very advanced construction of a processing plant for residues such as fine coal.

The fact that the government wants to provide Burkina Faso with a fine coal processing plant is a good thing. Anything that will avoid the fine coal affair that the country experienced a few months ago. Now, it is not enough to build, you have to surround yourself with all the safeguards so as not to fall under the sabotage of fine coal processing companies internationally. It will be necessary to ensure that the rulers who will come after understand the merits of such projects and ensure that these factories are sustainable. The authorities of the Transition had to evaluate technically and financially the advantages provided by these two factories.

In conclusion, it is clear that having these two factories is a financial boon for Burkina Faso. If you look at the refinery, the government cannot tell you exactly what the country actually earns from the mining companies, the cause being that our gold is refined outside without a representative of the state. It is the mining companies which, after refining the gold abroad, declare what they have received from the State. Therefore, it is clear that the State loses a lot in terms of tax revenue collection. With the refinery and the fine coal factory, the State will now be able to better monitor and above all control its gold production. Better, these two factories will allow the creation of thousands of jobs, therefore the creation of national wealth. Again, we must take all the necessary safeguards against international capitalism. They are extremely dangerous. In our surge of displayed sovereignty, we must not lose sight of these issues.

Interview by Ambéternifa Crépin SOMDA

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En as an expert on mining issues, what more should the authorities of the Transition do so that the people of Burkina Faso can benefit from their mineral wealth?

They are already on the right track with the gold refinery and the fine coal factory. The thought that there needs to be more of an impact of mining on the national economy is a good thing. Seeking to adjust the Mining Code to adapt it to the current context is a very good thing. The furrows they are blazing in the mining sector are to be congratulated and encouraged.