editor
Burkina Faso’s military government has suspended the issuance of export permits for artisanal and semi-mechanised gold and other precious commodities with immediate effect, it said.
“This suspension follows the need to clean up the sector and reflects the government’s desire to better organise the marketing of gold and other precious substances,” it said in a statement dated February 20.
It did not say how long the suspension would be in place.
Mining groups who have material to export are invited to reach out to the National Society for Precious Commodities (SONAP) for compensation, it added.
Gold is Burkina Faso’s main export, accounting for 37% of total exports in 2020, and mining is a leading source of jobs.
