Guinea Bans Raw Gold Exports Immediately

Guinea President Mamadi Doumbouya mandated an immediate ban on the export of unrefined gold to force domestic processing and capture greater economic value from the mining sector. The directive, announced following consultations with industry stakeholders, requires all gold produced within the country to undergo refining locally before international shipment.

The policy shift is supported by the near-completion of a state-linked refinery in Conakry, which holds a processing capacity of 250 tonnes per year. This infrastructure is designed to accommodate the nation's current output, which exceeded 22 tonnes in the first quarter of this year alone. Guinea currently ranks as Africa's sixth-largest gold producer.

Authorities have issued a formal warning to foreign mining firms, stating that non-compliance will result in the immediate revocation of operating licenses and the termination of mining contracts. This move aligns Guinea with a broader regional trend of resource nationalism, following similar export restrictions implemented in Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe to incentivize domestic industrialization.