With its latest EITI report, the Mali EITI goes to a new level of detail about the country’s extractives sector. It discloses how much the government received from extractive companies, together with proven reserves, exploration licenses and price development. This is information is critical to inform for discussions in Mali on how to manage future volatile revenue and to diversify the economy.
Mali’s economy is highly dependent on gold production, which is responsible for 75% of its exports and 7% of its GDP, according to the report. The country is the third gold producer in Africa and the 11th in the world. Revenues from this sector have been on the rise in previous years, including a 16.5% increase from 2010 to 2011. However, as Mali’s recently published 2011 EITI report makes clear, this rise was made possible because the increased gold price (up by 28%) offset the decreased production (down by 15%). In total, over CFA 194 billion (roughly US$ 430 million) was received by the government.
The strong exposure to fluctuations in gold prices and the dominant position of gold production in the economy underlines the high vulnerability of the Malian economy. Additional challenges are the lack of integration of the industrial gold sector into the broader economy, especially at a local level, and the abundance of artisanal mining.
The 2011 EITI report provides the much of the detailed information needed to have an informed discussion about these issues. For example, it includes production and export volumes; an overview of estimated reserves; a list of exploration licences and of state participation in extractives companies.
The EITI multi-stakeholder group in Mali is currently looking at shaping its EITI process to provide further data to inform discussions on issues such as how Mali might plan its future economy.
Download Mali’s 2011 EITI Report
For further information about EITI in Mali, please visit the Mali country page on the EITI website.
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