Regional technical workshop to launch the Central West and Central Plateau regions
The stakes of small-scale mining are enormous. The Promotion de l’Orpaillage Responsable (OR) project was born to encourage responsible gold mining at artisanal mining sites in Burkina Faso. The project, run by the consortium of Caritas Switzerland, Artisanal Gold Council and Solidar Switzerland, covers a number of communes in the Centre-Ouest and Plateau Central regions. Technical workshops to launch the GOLD project at regional level were held in Réo (Centre-Ouest) on Tuesday September 13 and in Zorgho (Plateau Central) on Thursday September 21, 2023.
For the project to succeed, key players need to be involved and mobilized. This requires a better understanding and ownership of the project on their part. This was the aim of the launch technical workshops. Around fifty (50) participants answered the call in each region. They included mining artisans, civil society organizations, administrative and customary authorities, and representatives of decentralized technical services. Talari Germaine OUOBA, High Commissioner of the Sanguié province, chaired the meeting in the Centre-Ouest region. She welcomed the presence of the stakeholders, given the importance of the project. According to her, the general report of the parliamentary commission on the management of mining titles, the social responsibility of mining companies and the mapping of artisanal mining sites, the Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (MAPE) sub-sector is spread across nearly 800 operating sites throughout Burkina Faso, and employs more than 1,200,000 people. ” Unfortunately, artisanal gold mining poses a number of challenges in terms of safety, respect for human rights, compliance with legislation, environmental degradation and workers’ health,” she continues.
That’s why the State is committed to supervising and overseeing activities in the artisanal and small-scale mining sector in accordance with certain provisions of the 2015 mining code. To this end, the Agence Nationale d’Encadrement des Exploitations Minières Artisanales et Semi-mécanisées (ANEEMAS) has been created and a regulatory framework has been put in place to support the management of the sector. The Promotion de l’Orpaillage Responsable (OR) project run by the Caritas Suisse, Artisanal Gold Council and Solidar Suisse consortium supports the efforts already made to improve management of the sector. According to Paguindamba Wilfried LOMPO, OR project team leader, the aim is to promote responsible gold mining at artisanal mining sites, so that all players in the chain benefit from better services and working conditions, and contribute to local development by reducing the negative effects of the sector. The project is funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
Family photo of the workshop in Réo (Centre-Ouest)
Family photo of the workshop in Zorgho (Plateau Central)
