The Minister of Mines, Simon-Pierre Boussim, visited the Transitional Legislative Assembly (ALT) on 17 July 2023 to discuss the draft revision of the Mining Code, according to the Ministry of Mines’ communications department. He was received by the members of the ALT’s Sustainable Development Commission (Commission du Développement Durable – CDD). The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the draft law amending Burkina Faso’s Mining Code, in particular articles 26 and 30, which was submitted to the CDD for examination. “Minister Simon-Pierre Boussim explained the rationale for amending articles 26 and 30 of the Mining Code, the aim of which is to meet the challenges of the moment. In his view, part of the Local Development Mining Fund (LDMF), initially earmarked to finance communal and regional development plans, will be allocated to the Patriotic Support Fund (FSP) to make the provisions of article 4 of the decree creating the FSP operational”, according to the Communications Department of the Ministry of Mines.
The amendment to the Mining Code stipulates that 85% of the 20% of proportional royalties paid to the FMDL will now be allocated to the FSP. In addition, 20% of the 1% of the turnover of operating mining companies will also be paid into the FSP. The Minister for Territorial Administration (MATDS), Emile Zerbo, who accompanied the Minister for Mines, welcomed the change, according to the Ministry of Mines Communications Department.
The plan to revise the Mining Code was announced by Minister Simon Pierre Boussim at the end of the Council of Ministers meeting on 7 December 2022. However, it was the Council of Ministers meeting of 19 April 2023 that adopted an amendment to the Mining Code to introduce provisions allowing part of the resources of the Local Development Mining Fund to be transferred to the Patriotic Support Fund. The draft has been sent to the ALT.
At the end of the meeting of the Local Development Mining Fund Allocation Committee for the second half of 2022, held on 23 March 2023, 12.038 billion FCFA of the 25.436 billion FCFA collected between July and December 2022 was earmarked for the Patriotic Support Fund. The amendment of articles 26 and 30 of the Mining Code will enable this sum to be transferred to the PSF. As a reminder, only 12 mines are currently in operation, and 4 are in difficult areas.
Pierre Balma
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