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New Sierra Leone mining laws favour nationals
02:33 p.m Jul 21, 1998 Eastern
By Allieu Ibrahim Kamara
FREETOWN, July 21 (Reuters) - Sierra Leone announced
new mining laws on Tuesday under which foreigners will in
most cases be granted licences only if they're linked to a
national partner with a stake of at least 25 percent in their
project.
But a senior official told Reuters that the new code, unveiled on
state radio by Mineral Resources Minister Mohamed Deen,
excluded such firms as titanuium dioxide miner Sierra Rutile
and diamond miner Branch Energy.
Deen also said ministers and government officials would be
specifically banned from mining, which had been temporarily
prohibited up until July 17, and any caught in the act would be
punished by law.
''Non-nationals who want to mine in the country must have a
Sierra Leonean partner and he must have a 25 percent share in
the mining company before the govenment will give a licence,''
said Deen, announcing the 1998 mining policy.
Sierra Leone vowed to clamp down on illegal mining after the
return to power in March of elected President Ahmad Tejan
Kabbah -- ousted by disgruntled army officers in May 1997,
and reinstated by Nigerian-led West African forces.
It lifted a total ban on July 17 except in the key eastern Kono
diamond area, where rebels remain active and attempts to crush
them continue. There, the ban was extended until the end of
July.
The senior official at the mineral resources ministry said that
another firm with pre-existing rights that wouldn't be affected
by the new code was bauxite miner SIEROMCO, the Sierra
Leone Ore and Metal Co.
Raids by rebels who took up arms in 1991 and later rallied to
the coup that toppled Kabbah had halted work by SIEROMCO
and Sierra Rutile.
The former British colony has a wealth of diamonds and other
minerals, such as gold, but remains one of the poorest nations
on earth.
Under the new code, which was drafted with World Bank help
and aims at securing more wealth from minerals for Sierra
Leoneans, large mining companies become responsible for
supplying water and electricity to areas they mine.
''If you are not a Sierra Leonean, the new policy does not allow
you in to the mining villages as before,'' Deen said, adding that
foreign buyers would have to employ Sierra Leoneans to go to
mining areas, buy diamonds, and bring them to major towns.
Under the new rules, mining monitors or others who supply
information leading to the capture of smugglers will be eligible
for 40 percent of the value of recovered diamonds.
Naturalised citizens do not qualify as Sierra Leoneans under the
terms of the new code.
Sierra Leone used to derive over 85 percent of its foreign
exchange revenue from mining, principally from rutile,
diamonds and bauxite. Smuggling ate heavily into diamond tax
revenue.
Basic commodities, including fuel, are now in short supply,
with pre-war donor loan programmes remaining frozen.
The government has also said it fears rebels might use mining
operations as a cover for military activities.
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