Mali to lift its suspension on the issuance of artisanal mining permits

Mali will partially lift its suspension on the issuance of mining permits on March 15, the country's mines ministry announced in a statement on Friday.

The West African nation, a leading gold producer, halted the allocation of mining titles across its territory in November 2022, citing efforts to improve the permitting process. In 2023, Mali introduced a new mining code that increased taxes and granted the state greater stakes in mining assets.

The ministry said the suspension will be eased after "major work to clean up the mining register." Under the new directive, authorities will accept applications for the renewal of search and exploitation permits, transitions from search to exploitation, and the transfer of exploitation permits. However, the issuance of new mining permits and the transfer of search permits will remain suspended.

In recent years, there have been concerns that profits from unregulated mining in northern Mali could benefit extremists active in that part of the country.

“Gold is by far Mali’s most important export, comprising more than 80% of total exports in 2021,” according to the International Trade Administration, which is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce. More than 2 million people, or more than 10% of Mali’s population, depend on the mining sector for income, according to the U.S.

Mali is one of the top three gold-producing countries in Africa. Several major gold-producing companies operate in this West African country, including Barrick Gold, B2Gold, Resolute Mining and Allied Gold.

Tensions have been rising between some mining companies and the military authorities, who are demanding that companies pay money and comply with a new mining code. At least four employees of the Canadian company Barrick were still in prison in Bamako at the end of last year. Military authorities then seized 3 tons of gold from Barrick’s mining site and deposited it in a Bamako bank.