Senegal seeks more equitable partnerships in mining sector

Senegal’s recently elected president, Bassirou Dioumaye Faye, has promised to renegotiate mining, gas and oil contracts with foreign companies. At a top-level summit in Paris this week, his mining minister outlined how the new government plans to break with old practices and alliances.

Speaking at this year’s Mining on Top Africa (Mota) conference, Birame Souleye Diop, Senegal’s Minister of Energy and Mining, said his government intends to review contracts signed by mining companies that fail to meet their environmental commitments.

“I visited Kedougou a few days ago,” Diop said, referring to the region that is home to most of Senegal’s industrial and artisanal gold mines.

Located 700 km east of the capital, Dakar, and close to the border with Mali, it is one of the country’s poorest regions. It is also subject to widespread contamination.

“The water of the Falame River is completely polluted, animals are dying, children are dying, forests have been decimated,” Diop said.

“It’s because of cyanide and mercury poisoning from gold mining. It’s unfair.”

Beyond European investments

Environmental degradation in Kedougou has been documented for years. According to the Institute for Security Studies, 3.9 tons of mercury are used in the region each year, posing health risks to both miners and residents.

Immediately after taking office in April, President Faye ordered an audit of Senegal’s oil, gas and mining sectors.

“Our mining partners are committed to respecting all clauses of the agreements and we as a state have an obligation to intervene and restore public order,” Diop told mining companies, government leaders and experts attending the Mota conference on July 3 and 4.

The annual meeting aims to foster partnership between Europe and Africa.

However, the Senegalese minister told delegates in Paris that he did not intend to limit the search for potential investors to Europe alone.

“We have to find what is best for us. And if it is in the interest of my country to have a partnership with Saudi Arabia, then I will go there,” he said.

Give and take

Diop stressed that local communities must also be able to benefit from the exploitation of their land, adding that a percentage of profits should be allocated to projects that benefit local residents.

“It’s not enough to just give local people jobs. We need to focus on where there’s a need. It doesn’t make sense for a mining company to build a hospital when we need schools,” Diop said.

He added that in the past, Senegal simply accepted what companies investing in the country were willing to give to the local population. That is no longer the case, he said.

Diop also stressed that foreign companies should share technology with Senegal and not just extract its basic raw materials.

“They take our resources, process them and then sell them to us,” he told RFI.

Maintaining Africa’s mineral wealth

Senegal began producing oil for the first time in June. Ultimately, capacity is expected to be more than 200,000 barrels per day.

The country is also rich in mineral deposits such as phosphates, iron ore, zirconium and gold.

Diop says French exploration investors have a clearer picture of Senegal’s mineral resources than the government.

“They have the data, but they haven’t shared it with me. How generous are we talking about? Transformation also means knowing what’s in your subsoil,” he said.

African nations set up the African Minerals Development Centre in 2016 to help them better benefit from mineral resources. However, only a handful of countries have so far ratified the founding charter, meaning the centre has not been fully operational.

“Before we convince ourselves that we need Europe, I think we should at least start by talking to ourselves, Africans,” Diop said.