Striking Gold in Burkina Faso
- Publisher:
- Focus on Land in Africa
- Publication Date:
- 13 January 2015
- Tags:
- Burkina Faso, Children and Youth, Environment, Land and Rural Issues, Mining
Burkina Faso is currently experiencing a dramatic gold mining boom. It has been fuelled by a hike in global gold prices and by government reforms aimed to attract Foreign Direct Investment in the sector. Gold mining has enormous potential to support development that benefits the poor. Six industrial mines have been opened since 2008, and seven others are projected. At the same time, small-scale artisanal mining has rapidly expanded and generated a unique increase in wealth for rural households. At least 650,000 people are estimated to benefit from artisanal mining. The ability of the State to accommodate both industrial and small-scale mining interests will largely determine whether gold mining can lead to sustained improvements in rural welfare in Burkina Faso. One way the central State is attempting this is through using Authorisation for Artisanal Mining (AAM) licenses to formalise small-scale mining activities. This brief examines the extent to which these licenses are achieving the intended formalisation objectives.
