Mining regulation in Africa

In most African countries uranium mining and milling regulation is either minimal or absent. Therefore, uranium mining in Africa is largely uncontrolled for. Lacking regulation is one of the explanations for increasing investment by foreign uranium mining companies. As uranium mining becomes more expensive in Canada and Australia due to stricter environmental and public health regulations, mining companies divert operations to Africa where these costs are substantially lower.

Bad mining contracts
In general, but also in the uranium mining sector, African governments have failed to collect the additional rents generated by mining companies because they have given tax subsidies to the industry and mining companies have been pushing for tax breaks in secret mining contracts, amounting to an aggressive tax avoidance strategy. As a result, the citizens of mineral-rich countries continue to live in poverty, and are in some cases subject to violent conflict fuelled by the wealth generated from natural resources.

Breaking the ‘resource curse’
To break this ‘resource curse’ and turn mineral wealth into revenue for development, the laws, policies, and institutions that govern the financial payments made by mining corporations to national governments need to be reformed. Regarding uranium mining and milling, the policy and legal vacuum enables all kinds of problems to develop, e.g. concerning waste-management, tailings, and water quality and management.