To instil order in mining sector: Prof Fuh Calistus gives operators one week ultimatum to comply.

The order was given by the Interim Minister of Mines, Industry and Technological Development, Prof Fuh Calistus Gentry. He was speaking during a meeting in Yaounde, Wednesday September 6. 

It was attended by stakeholders and operators of the semi-mechanised mining sector and mayors of the East and Adamawa Regions. It was geared towards instilling order in the country’s mining sector.

During the over three hours meeting, the Interim Minister, who doubles as Secretary State in the said ministry, regretted that for the past years, a lot of disorder has been reigning in the sector.

He said the sector, with a huge potential, has brought very little to the Gross Domestic Product, GDP, of the country. Going forward, the minister warned that operators have been given a week to comply with the regulations to obtain a licence to mine.

During the meeting, Prof Fuh Calistus also instructed that operators must pay the taxes associated with their type of operation, while complying with the rules in force. 

The said rules include a commitment to restore the environment to its former state after the operation and obligation to develop social projects beneficial to the population.

The interim minister stressed that the projects in the sectors of education, health, energy, water or public works, must be agreed between the concerned companies and mayors in conjunction with the population, through the traditional leaders. 

“We expect within a week that all the places where they have dug, there will be restoration of the environment and that there will be one, two or three social projects that the mayors will choose for the mining operators to execute,” the minister instructed.

He further warned that: “Companies that will not comply will be shut down with immediate effect”. 

Restoring order in sector

The measures discussed during the meeting, the minister explained, were geared towards bringing order in the sector that has witnessed so much laxity over the years. 

“We want to bring order in the sector. What we have done administratively is that the mayors will be directly involved in the supervision of mining activities,” he said. 

He also stressed that they have also resolved that every divisional delegation will assign focal points in the Subdivisions which will work directly with the concerned councils. 

Mission abroad in the horizon

During the meeting, it was also announced that a delegation, comprising operators in the sector, will be sent on a mission to Brazil and Canada, to appropriate internationally recognised standards of mining to boost profit and environmental safety. 

“We want to migrate from this open system where chemicals and things are thrown into the soil and rivers. We will be migrating to a closed system where everything will be done with maximum profit,” he further stated. 

According to the minister, only 40% of gold is extracted by companies while the rest are thrown away, causing loss to not only the operators but also the State and the communities around the mining communities.

It should be recalled that the Yaounde meeting was organised against the backdrop of a 15-day ultimatum to operators, by the Interim Mines minister last August 18. They were ordered to submit to the mining authorities a list of the various social projects they had engaged for the benefit of the populations affected by their semi-mechanised mining activities.

The circular of the acting Minister of Mines, came after the initial 45-day deadline prescribed by the Mining Code, had elapsed. 

It is also worth noting that the Head of State's in his December 31, 2022, addressed to the nation, said the non-oil mining sector has a major challenge to surmount. The move seeks to increase state revenue and, by extension, its contribution to GDP beyond the traditional 1%.