How far can institutional reforms strengthen mining sovereignty?

It is a string of new administrative services that the Government of Mali is putting in place as the provisions of the Mining Code are implemented. The adoption of this Code in August 2023 marks the starting point of a desire to reform the Malian mining sector with strong measures for better control of the returns from mining. These measures, the most emblematic of which remains the increase in state participation from 20 to 35% (including 5% reserved for nationals), are now accompanied by the creation of no fewer than seven structures covering several chapters of mining activity.

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The Malian Government’s message is unambiguous. The ultimate goal is to play a role throughout the chain, and to achieve this, it must reclaim its place in mining activity as both a regulator and an actor. The new services, some still at the stage of legal creation, others fully operational, aim to strengthen all mechanisms for managing mineral resources in Mali. This management aims both to strengthen control over the production and marketing chain of mineral substances and to establish a State that is an actor in exploration, exploitation, marketing and processing.

● A mining administration up to the challenges.

The first panel of institutional reforms illustrates the implementation of the Malian authorities’ vision.

Based on the finding from the audit of mining companies – that the mining administration is not sufficiently calibrated – the Government decided to operationalize three specific services for monitoring the application of the Mining Code and, where applicable, for punishing observed infractions.

➔ Local content is taking shape.

With the appointment of the Permanent Secretary, the executive body for Local content is beginning to be operationalized. This service will have an operational technical unit and an administrative management unit to evaluate the results of the local content promotion policy in Mali. Various experts (mining engineers, IT specialists, statisticians, lawyers, etc.) will collaborate within this technical unit to examine the supply, recruitment and training plans of mining companies and ensure the proper functioning of the policy.

➔ The Commissioner’s Office for mining activities at work.

Announced in the Mining Code, the Commissioner’s Office for mining activities was created by decree on December 31, 2025. This body, which has a role of coordination, control and orientation of national mining policy, is again placed under the direct authority of the President of the Republic. The Commissioner, with ministerial rank, Hilaire Diarra, will rely on a cabinet, technical services and two key departments: Monitoring and Control, and Studies and Foresight. The Commissioner’s Office has its own budget resources and presents a strategic report to the Head of State each year. Already, it is accompanying the implementation of reforms.

➔ The Special Mining Brigade (BSM).

Long awaited, the Special Mining Brigade has been created to combat offenses against the Mining Code: detection of crimes, evidence gathering, identification of perpetrators and seizure of illegally extracted minerals. The BSM will also assist the administration in evicting illegal operators. Led by a commander appointed by the Council of Ministers, this brigade becomes a central tool for regulating and protecting the Malian mining sector. The appointment of its first head appears to be the initial issue at this time.

● A State-actor in mining.

➔ SOREM

SOREM was the first link in this desire for the State to return to the ecosystem as an actor in exploration, but above all in exploitation. The State-owned company has benefited, since its creation in 2022, from several mining titles, including the emblematic Morila and Yatela mining perimeters. A partnership agreement was signed with Flagship, an American company, to develop or, failing that, reactivate the Morila mine. Some critics note that SOREM, after nearly four years of existence and significant permits, is struggling to mobilize the resources necessary to fully start its activities. It has not yet produced a single ounce.

➔ SOROMA

The National Refining Company of Mali (SOROMA) would be a giant step if it comes into being. Created in partnership with the Russian company Yadran, SOROMA embodies one of the concrete applications of the Mining Code, which requires companies to have their gold production refined through a national entity. However, the project has fallen behind the schedule announced during the foundation stone laying ceremony chaired by the Malian Head of State.

➔ SOPAMIM

One of the newest, the Malian Mining Asset Company (SOPAMIM) is part of a dynamic already observed at the sub-regional level. Indeed, the two AES countries have established a state-owned company responsible for managing state holdings in mining joint ventures. Based with the Malian Minister of Finance, SOPAMIM’s main mission will be to centralize, manage and acquire holdings in mining companies to strengthen state control over its resources, thereby increasing national revenues.

➔ OMASP

The Malian Office of Precious Substances is created under the authority of the Malian Minister of Commerce. This office will control gold production from small mines and artisanal mining. The objective is to end the export of this production without any state control. Thanks to this mechanism, Burkina Faso now claims just over 40 tonnes of gold from the artisanal sector.

Although designed to support sovereignty over mineral resources, these newly created services, even before becoming fully operational, are perceived by some private sector actors as a break with a doctrine now abandoned by the State, which fully trusted the private sector to develop the extractive industry. These actors are questioning the State’s financial capacity to make these services fully operational. This is another challenge the sovereign State will have to overcome.

By B.S.