The Captain Ibrahim Traoré-led government of Burkina Faso has officially awarded an industrial mining permit to its state-owned mining company, SOPAMIB, for the development of the Bouboulou gold project.
The move signals a bold departure from decades of relying heavily on Western and private corporations to extract the country’s mineral wealth.
A "Revolution" in the mining sector
The Bouboulou gold extraction site is located within the north-central Yako commune and will operate under a specialized domestic subsidiary known as SOPAMIB Bouboulou.
Following an executive session on Thursday, July 9, 2026, Burkina Faso's Council of Ministers confirmed that the commercial venture is slated to span more than 15 years.
