Traore opens Burkina Faso’s first gold refinery in local processing push
Key Takeaways
- Traore inaugurated Burkina Faso's first gold refinery, RAFFINOR-BF, in Ouagadougou.
- The facility can process up to 400 kilograms of gold per day.
- The government wants to expand local processing to manganese, copper, zinc and other minerals.
The new facility can process up to 400 kilograms of gold daily as Burkina Faso moves to keep more of its mineral value chain within the country.
Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traore has inaugurated the country's first gold refinery as his government moves to process more of its mineral resources locally.
Traore opened RAFFINOR-BF in Ouagadougou on Monday, cutting the ribbon before touring the facility and observing the refining process from raw gold to finished bars.
The facility has the capacity to process up to 400 kilograms of gold per day.
Traore said the refinery was the first step towards developing a complete domestic value chain for the country's mineral resources, “Whether it is gold, manganese, copper, zinc or any other metal.”
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Six countries account for three-quarters of Europe’s unicorn startups
“Our ambition is no longer simply to be a country that extracts and takes its raw materials abroad. We want to refine all our metals locally,” Traore stressed.
“For everything related to the extractive industries, we want to have the entire value chain locally. And we are starting with gold,” he added.
Mining Minister Yacouba Zabre Gouba said Burkina Faso produced more than 94 tonnes of gold in 2025, a record for the country despite continuing security challenges.
But Gouba said increasing production alone was no longer the country's priority.
“Producing in quantity is no longer enough. Extracting is no longer enough. Exporting our resources in raw form is no longer enough,” Gouba said, adding that “every national resource [must] first serve the nation.”
Burkina Faso is a major African gold producer, although insecurity has disrupted mining operations in parts of the country.
Since taking power in 2022, Traore's government has increased state control over the mining sector and pushed for greater local processing.
A new mining code adopted in 2024 increased the state's stake in mining projects and strengthened local participation.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Ugandan queen mother claims house arrest amid Tooro succession dispute
The government is seeking to extend the local processing model beyond gold to other resources, including manganese, copper and zinc.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
