Mali’s new mining law: an improvement, but fails artisanal miners

Mali’s long-awaited mining reforms are here. A mix of progressive and outdated measures, the code must pass parliamentary review before entering into law. We assess the significance of three aspects of the legislation.

Despite lengthy preparations, many were surprised when Mali's new mining law passed by ordinance in August. The next stage is parliamentary review, where we expect additional revisions before a final version is agreed. This creates an opportunity to further strengthen its contents. 

The news agency Reuters immediately put out a report that focused on whether the new law is a "new instance of 'resource nationalism'". In fact, much of the content was informed by technocratic advice from the IMF and World Bank – not institutions typically associated with government-led attacks on global mining companies. 

But we’ll set aside the grand political economy debate to share our thoughts on the new law, concentrating on the areas covered by our policy recommendations from late last year: fiscal reforms, artisanal mining and local revenue management. 

Read the full blog by IIED's Ahamadou Mohamed Maiga and Brendan Sch....