By Ebi Kesiena
The interim President of Mali, Assimi Goita has approved new mining legislation that would enable the military-led administration to acquire more gold concessions and make up for what it claims is a significant shortfall in production income.
According to the government, the new code may more than increase the sector’s contribution to gross domestic product to about 20% as Mali is one of Africa’s leading producers of gold.
The new code, which was signed on state television, will allow the state and local investors to acquire interests as high as 35% in mining projects, compared to 20% currently.
Alousseni Sanou, the finance minister for Mali, stated this recently that an assessment of the mining industry had revealed that the state was losing between $497 million and $995 million ($300 billion to 600 billion CFA francs), which it aimed to recoup.
“The shortfall is around 300 to 600 billion CFA. So if the facts are established, it will be a question of re-negotiating what is renegotiable and recovering what is recoverable. When we go into negotiations with the companies, it is possible that we will obtain 300 to 400 billion,” he added.
Mining Minister Amadou Keita stated that the new rule will tighten down on mining corporations processing their gold ore at a second, tax-exempt mine, which has resulted in some state losses. He said that the granting of mining titles would receive more attention.
“From now on, for the sake of transparency and inclusiveness, mining titles will be signed by several ministers (finance, mining, environment, etc.),” he announced via a television broadcast.
However, a mining ministry official said last week that whether the code will have an impact on already-existing projects could not immediately be ascertained, as this would rely on the implementing decrees, which have not yet been made public.
