IN THE STOPE
(STEM) training and Technical and Vocational Education
and Training (TVET). I also established the Directorate of
Science, Technology, and Innovation within the Office
of President to test and scale technology solutions for
governance, business, science and research, among
other things. We are open to specific partnerships that
support the integration of mining-related training in the
curricula and in supporting mining-specific technology
and innovation hubs that are embedded in our overall
strategic education outcomes.
As a government, we want partners who believe that our
nation and our people matter, and our people deserve
more than mere pittances doled out in corporate social
gestures. We want fair and ethical deals with patient
and credible partners. You see, business is not a
zero-sum game and it should not be. Business
is transactional. ‘Renegotiation’ and
‘compromise’ are not dirty words in
business. All we seek, as a country,
is a cordial engagement in which
all parties get to a meeting of
minds on how best to re-shape
and develop that investor-
host country relationship so
that we both have a win-win
outcome.
“We see these skills as necessary for not only safely
operating new mining technologies at mine sites, but
also to improve in-country value chains like cutting and
polishing diamonds, smelting iron-ore, refining gold,
or adding value to bauxite. Obviously, as a country, we
do seek greater benefit from our natural resources. Our
objective as a government is simple – we want a fair and
appropriate share of returns on our natural resources
(mineral wealth) and we want to use those returns to
develop the lives of our people – to build hospitals
and schools, provide pipe-borne water, make roads
accessible and create local economic centres that our
people can live off.
Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio giving his keynote address at
the 2020 Investing in African Mining Indaba.
patient investors – investors who value fair and
ethical business principles and practices;
investors who are interested in a
sustainable, long-term relationship
with our country. We are not
interested in players who
merely speculate against
international fluctuations
in mineral prices. We
have had our experience
with fly-by-night and
briefcase investments
that made huge profits
but promptly collapsed
when ecosystem and
market forces hit a
short lull. We are not
interested in investors who
speculate against changes
in government (knowing that
Party A is amenable to taking
bribes and can rush through
shoddy legislation that cede to them
Mining Lease Agreements that they
themselves know are untenable).
" As a government, we want
partners who believe that our
nation and our people matter, and
our people deserve more than mere
pittances doled out in corporate
social gestures.
“What we seek to do is no
different from what every
country does the world
over. We want to enhance
beneficiation in the best
interests of our citizens. It is
consistent with our Medium
Term National Development Plan
to increase revenue share, diversify
the economy, and create jobs. We want
to increase the proportion the extractives
contribute to our GDP and to boost our country’s
economic resilience. We are sure our investor partners
understand this.
“As companies, we know that your primary motive is to
get adequate returns on your investment. Clearly, an
investment would only make sense if it is profitable. So
what we should jointly foster (as a government and as
business) is an ecosystem of predictability and trust –
one that engenders confidence on all sides that we can
build a win-win relationship: a relationship that is based
on transparency, open communication, and common
understanding knowing that both of us (investors and
government/the people) have an inherent and shared
interest in those mineral deposits. So therefore, what
we want as a nation are trustworthy, credible, and
36
African Mining April 2020
“We have cracked down hard on corruption in our country
and all our mining-sector policies are well-forethought
and informed by the principles of transparency and
accountability at all levels. If a deal does not look right
and smell right, we would rather leave it outside the
homestead. As a Government, we want patient and
credible investor partners. We are not interested in players
who speculate against what they argue are unproven
reserves or unclear geological and technical data in
order to wring out unfair deals. We have completed a
nationwide airborne geophysical survey. We now have
very high-resolution datasets from that survey. The
preliminary indications are that we have extensive proven
reserves of metals and ores. We believe patient and
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