By Enyichukwu Enemanna
The military-governed Burkina Faso has inaugurated its first gold refinery, as the West African country seeks to process more of its mineral resources locally and generate more revenue from its gold industry.
According to a statement from the Communications Directorate of the Presidency of Faso, head of the junta government, President Ibrahim Traoré inaugurated the National Gold Refinery of Burkina Faso, known as RAFFINOR-BF, on Monday.
The government described the opening as part of a broader effort to move away from exporting raw materials and develop domestic capacity to process the country’s mineral resources.
“Our ambition is no longer to be just a country that extracts and takes its raw materials abroad. We want to refine all our metals locally. We want to have the entire value chain here,” Traoré said, according to the presidency’s statement.
The refinery represents an investment of more than 11 billion CFA francs (approximately $19 million) by the Burkinabe state, including through the National Precious Substances Company, known by its French acronym SONASP, in partnership with the country’s private sector, the presidency said.
The facility will initially have the capacity to refine 164 metric tons of gold a year, with plans to eventually increase capacity to 515 metric tons annually, according to the statement.
The refinery is expected to handle gold from both industrial and artisanal mining. The government says domestic refining will allow Burkina Faso to retain more of the value generated by its gold resources and develop technical expertise within the country.
Traoré also called on young people to develop the technical skills required by the industry and learn how to participate across the gold value chain.
Energy, Mines and Quarries Minister Yacouba Zabré Gouba described the refinery’s inauguration as an assertion of national sovereignty.
“This is the day we take back the keys to our own house. Our gold will no longer be used to create added value for others while our people remain in need,” Gouba said, according to the presidency.
The government ultimately wants RAFFINOR-BF to process Burkina Faso’s entire domestic gold output and establish the country as a regional center for gold refining in West Africa, the presidency said.
