Cameroon targets under-reported gold output in mining crackdown

Cameroon's government announced on Wednesday that it was cracking down on the gold mining sector over gaps between the volumes produced and the amounts declared by companies.

Authorities estimate that illegal gold exports to the United Arab Emirates have deprived the state of around 2,000 billion CFA francs, about $3.5 billion, over the past five years.

Acting mining minister Fuh Calistus Gentry told journalists that the main problem was not necessarily the disappearance of gold belonging to the state, but the under-reporting of part of production by some private operators.

Cameroon's mining sector has faced repeated criticism over the low revenue generated from gold extraction. The government plans to increase controls at mining sites, introduce minimum gold delivery thresholds, improve monitoring of ore recovery stages and strengthen production traceability.

Fuh said the government also planned to address licensing problems. He said more than 200 companies are known to be carrying out mining activities without authorisation, and that 137 cases have already been sent to the competent courts.

The government also plans to act against the improper use of exploration permits for mining operations. Fuh said an exploration permit is meant for exploration work to identify and assess a deposit.

Cameroon is seeking to use mineral resources including iron, diamonds, gold and cobalt to develop its economy, and adopted a new mining code in 2023.