Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are demonstrating their determination to accelerate the local processing of their natural resources in order to strengthen their economic sovereignty.

Meeting on Monday in Ouagadougou, the ministers responsible for Mines, Energy and Hydrocarbons from the three countries stressed the need to gain greater control over the entire value chain, from resource extraction to processing.

“It is not only about having mineral resources, but above all about being able to process them,” said Mali’s Minister of Mines, Amadou Keita, during a public conference at Joseph Ki-Zerbo University.

The meeting marked the launch of the first Energy, Mines and Hydrocarbons Week of the Alliance of Sahel States (SEMH-AES), organized alongside the 8th edition of the West African Mining Activities Week (SAMAO).

Rich in gold, uranium, lithium, oil, gas and iron, the three countries now aim to derive greater value from their resources by developing national processing capacities.

For Niger’s Minister of Petroleum, Hamadou Tini, these resources must become “a lever for sovereignty, development and regional integration.”

In Burkina Faso, Minister of Energy and Mines Yacouba Zabré Gouba also called for local processing to become an “essential lever” for the sovereignty of the Confederation of Sahel States.