Resource World Magazine

leFt: Diamond drilling on the night shift at pmI gold's obotan gold project in ghana, West africa. photo by Nyani Quarmyne/courtesy pmI gold Corp. rIgHt: Former Chief geologist for Hummingbird resources, Danae voormeij, and her soil sampling crew in southeast liberia. From left to right: eric Doe, Uriah, abraham, elijah Johnson and moses Dennis. photo by Steve Bell. West Africa's fortunes are slowly changing for the better, both politically and economically. This is good news for the region's peoples and is good news for its burgeoning mining and metals sector. For many West African nations, mining has become a vital instrument to facilitate development and economic growth. For those operating or exploring within the region, the rewards can be impressive and the resource potential is very attractive. Moreover, first-mover advantage can reap major dividends in this region. Even well-known and well-travelled parts of West Africa are witnessing exciting developments. Ghana, which has a venerable history of gold mining, has never been riper for exploration using the modern techniques and methodologies. However, hurdles still exist and several West African governments have been reevaluating national mining codes over the past few years. They aim to increase the state ownership in operations. For example, Guinea introduced new legislation in 2011 that enables the government to secure stakes up to 35%, an increase from 15%. On the ground, there are other obstacles. Modern infrastructure can sometimes NOVEMBER 2012 be non-existent and the climate, which ranges from arid to tropical, can present its own operating difficulties. "I'd say malaria is your biggest worry," Danae Voormeij, a field geologist with over 10 years of experience working throughout Africa, told Resource World. The fauna can also present unique problems. "When I'm working in the bush, I always have local men with machetes with me. They take care of the snakes really fast," she added. "The challenges that we face in Africa are similar to the challenges encountered in mineral exploration in many of the developing countries that are located in the tropics, worldwide," said Voormeij. "These include the lack of road access into often densely vegetated areas, being surrounded by extreme poverty, poor hygiene, and working in extreme climatic conditions. But these can be overcome with a positive attitude, experience and persistence." Corruption in certain quarters remains problematic, while violence and rebellion can never be ruled out. The most highprofile example, in recent years, was Mali's 2011 military coup. This quickly mutated into a separatist rebellion that affected the country's northern territories, a situation that remains contained but unresolved. "If a situation is truly out of hand," explains Voormeij, "then the UN would be there. It's nice having the UN in the country, peacekeepers, stationed at different town centres, moving in convoys on their weekly rotation. But I've never seen them as deep in the bush as at my exploration sites. In the bush, it's the local indigenous and artisanal mining communities we have to deal with on our own, and from which we obtain workers." But mostly the difficulties are parochial in nature, although this does not mean they are any less serious. "If a group of bandits, who have recently stolen 40 head of cattle from the local mayor, are passing through your exploration camp, let them," she said. "If the local mayor then insists on you handing over your vehicles to chase down the bandits, don't. Their tribal-related issues have nothing to do with us," she said. Sound community relations are invaluable at the company management level. "Introduce company management to the chief elders in a traditional ceremony […] Perhaps participate in a closing ceremony at the end of an extensive drill program," she added. www.resourceworld.com 17

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