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J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 1 7
MINING
I
t's a long and bumpy plane ride from head offices in Toronto
and Vancouver. But there are a number of key reasons why
Burkina Faso has emerged as one of the fastest growing areas
for gold exploration in West Africa.
"It has some very fertile greenstone belts and you don't have
to blow budgets to get work done,'' said Alex Klenman, Chairman
and CEO of Nexus Gold Corp., one of the Canadian companies
active there.
Klenman said major players in Burkina Faso, including
Endeavour Mining Corp. and Roxgold Inc., are getting financial
backing from major international banking groups, including BNP
Paribas. "It's a sign that there is good strength in the country,'' he
said.
Burkina Faso is a landlocked nation, south of Mali and north
of Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. It covers an area of roughly 274,000
km
2
and has an estimated population of more than 16 million.
The country has a stable political setting with a pro-mining
and foreign investment stance. However, in January 2016, radi-
cal Islamists attacked a hotel and café in the country's capital
of Ouagadougou, killing 29 people. The café was frequented by
Burkina Faso mineral exploration
heating up
by Peter Kennedy
Drilling operations at the
Nexus Niangouela gold
concessions in Burkina Faso.
Photo courtesy Nexus Gold
Corp.
