The National Mining Corporation (Sonamines) is significantly increasing its scrutiny of gold operators across Cameroon. Following an extensive inspection tour through the Adamaoua and East regions, key hubs for artisanal and semi-mechanized gold production, Director General Serge Hervé Boyogueno delivered a forthright assessment. His findings reveal that numerous operators are failing to meet expected production thresholds, some demonstrate clear insolvency, while widespread environmental non-compliance and opaque commercial channels undermine the state’s control over this vital sector.

A field audit uncovers vulnerabilities in Cameroon’s gold sector

The regions visited represent the core of Cameroon’s gold mining activities, characterized by a mix of semi-mechanized companies and countless artisanal miners. Sonamines’ mission was specifically designed to verify that permit holders were adhering to their contractual and regulatory obligations. The Director General’s observations highlight a persistent gap between the commitments made when titles were granted and the actual productivity observed at the operational sites.

A significant number of operators are not achieving the production levels stipulated in their terms of reference. This underperformance is compounded, for some, by documented insolvency concerning the state and its various agencies. On this matter, the head of Sonamines explicitly defers the decision-making process to the Ministry of Mines, which holds the sole authority to suspend or revoke permits. The state-owned company thus positions itself as the technical body for assessment, entrusting the political oversight with the responsibility for imposing sanctions.

Insolvency, environmental concerns, and commercial opacity: a multifaceted challenge

Beyond strictly financial matters, the mission meticulously documented alarming environmental deficiencies. Key areas requiring urgent attention include the rehabilitation of exploited sites, the proper management of wastewater contaminated with mercury or cyanide, and the secure demarcation of extraction zones. These failures expose neighboring communities to significant health hazards and jeopardize the long-term sustainability of an industry that is increasingly vital to the local economies of the East and Adamaoua regions.

Another critical front concerns commercialization practices. A substantial portion of the extracted gold bypasses official channels, feeding regional contraband networks. This deprives the public treasury of essential revenue and hinders the traceability of the precious metal. Such opacity, a long-standing concern for specialized organizations, directly contradicts Yaoundé’s declared objective of mineral sovereignty. Sonamines now intends to tighten its grip by reinforcing reporting obligations and expanding the network of approved collection points.

Towards a national strategic gold reserve

The most transformative ambition championed by the Director General’s office remains the establishment of a national strategic gold stock. This objective, inspired by practices observed among several African central banks, aims to equip Cameroon with a metallic reserve capable of underpinning a portion of its monetary policy and serving as a crucial buffer against external economic shocks. This logic aligns with that of other producing nations in the sub-region, all eager to capture greater value from their own natural resources.

However, the success of this strategy hinges on Sonamines’ ability to channel a significant fraction of national production to its official counters. This necessitates a prior clean-up of the operator landscape, offering competitive purchase prices to counter informal buyers, and close coordination with security forces and customs along border corridors. The forthcoming arbitrations from the Ministry of Mines regarding the fate of defaulting operators will, in this respect, be decisive.

The implementation phase of Cameroon’s mining reform promises to be intricate. It creates a tension between the imperative of contractual discipline, the preservation of a sector that provides informal employment, and the ambition to integrate gold into a framework of financial sovereignty. While the precise timetable for ministerial decisions has not been released, the conclusions of Sonamines’ mission are expected to inform upcoming directives. The Director General has indicated plans to continue these control operations in other production basins.