Burkina Faso: Traoré Marks Four Years In Power Opens Gold Refinery Seeking Mining Sovereignty EASTERN PILOT | OCTOBER 01, 2026 | Contribut...
Burkina Faso: Traoré Marks Four Years In Power Opens Gold Refinery Seeking Mining Sovereignty
EASTERN PILOT | OCTOBER 01, 2026 |
Contributors: Nicolas Négoce,BBC West Africa correspondent and | Neil Murphy | June 26/2026 |
The national gold refinery, Raffinor, marks what the presidency called “a historic step in Burkina Faso’s quest for economic independence”. It can process 164 tonnes of gold a year. Burkina Faso inaugurated its first gold refinery on 28 September, in the presence of the junta leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, according to a statement from the presidency.
“Burkina Faso has taken a historic step in its quest for economic independence,” the presidency said in a social-media post. Construction of the Burkina Faso National Gold Refinery, Raffinor-BF, began in late November 2023. It has the capacity to process 164 tonnes of gold a year, with plans to raise this eventually to 515 tonnes, according to the presidency.
Target of 100 direct and 5,000 indirect jobs
The refinery cost more than CFA11bn ($20m), financed by the Burkinabè state in partnership with domestic private investors, the statement said. “Our ambition is no longer simply to be a country that extracts its raw materials and sends them abroad,” Traoré said, according to the presidency. “We want to refine all our metals here […] We want the entire value chain to be based here.”
“This is the day we take back the keys to our own house,” said mining minister Yacouba Zabré Gouba. “Our gold will no longer be used to create added value for others while our own people remain in need.” The refinery is expected to create 100 direct jobs and 5,000 indirect jobs, according to official figures. Burkina Faso produced more than 94 tonnes of gold in 2025, making it one of sub-Saharan Africa’s leading producers, according to the country’s mining ministry.
Burkina Faso's military junta has broken off diplomatic ties with France, accusing Paris of persistently acting against its national interests. Relations between Burkina Faso and its former colonial ruler worsened after Capt Ibrahim Traore seized power in a coup in 2022 and pursued largely anti-Western policies.
In a televised statement on Friday, communications minister Pingdwendé Gilbert Ouédraogo said France was guilty of "ceaseless activism" against his country and accused it of "neo-colonial ambitions". The French foreign ministry called the decision "hostile and unfounded" and said it "illustrated the troubling drift by the Burkinabe government".France also urged nationals in the country "to exercise heightened vigilance".
Burkina Faso, like its neighbour Mali, has been battling an Islamist insurgency for over a decade, often alongside French forces deployed in the region. Soon after he took power, Capt Traoré expelled French troops. His government has accused France of having a "secret agenda" and pivoted towards China and Russia. The latest Burkinabe statement says conditions for mutual respect no longer exist between the two countries. It alleges French support for "subversive networks and an intent to marginalise" Burkina Faso on the international stage.
The statement adds that the decision to sever ties "concerns exclusively the institutional framework of relations" but "in no way calls into question the historical, human, cultural and social ties that unite the Burkinabe and French peoples". The junta pledged to restore democracy in 2024, but reneged on this promise and formally dissolved political parties in January this year.
In January 2025, Burkina Faso, along with two neighbouring military-led states – Mali and Niger, officially broke away from the regional West African bloc, Ecowas, to form a new group, The Alliance of the Sahel States. France has had no ambassador in Burkina Faso since January 2023. In 2024, the country expelled three French diplomats, accusing them of "subersive activities". France denied the claims.
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