The African Mining Legislation Atlas (AMLA) started in Kigali Serena Hotel on December 9th and closed yesterday on December 20th after the participants learnt on different topics ranging from local participation in mining and transparency to the proper use of fiscal incentives.
The AMLA Workshop brought together university researchers in law, geologists & mine engineers, as well as many law students from some 23 universities in Africa. They were, in all, 61 participants who graduated, after eloquently summarizing their work in front of their peers.
“We thank the University of Kigali (UoK) for hosting this workshop,” said Stephen Karangizi, CEO of the African Legal Support Facility (ALSF); an organization which seeks to promote learning through the delivery of legislative resources materials on the mining sector in Africa.
He was very appreciative of the various discussions held during the workshop, which will have a clear impact in improving the production conditions of the African mining sector.
“The participants in this conference will put in motion, positive changes in the sector by ensuring a new legislation,” said Philibert Afrika, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Kigali.
In the ten-day workshop, Mining law experts, geologists and other mining engineers from South Africa, DRC, Senegal, Mali and other African countries, discussed the challenges of this sector including the issue of illegal mining.
“The African mining sector is sufficiently regulated, however, it turns out that some mining explorers avoid this mining code and work illegally without having the operating license,” said Prof. Idi Gaparayi, Dean of Faculty of Law of the UoK during its communication entitled Illegal Mining in Africa.
Dr. Fidèle Masengo, CEO of Kigali International Arbitration Centre (KIAC) spoke about the importance of the Centre in the settlement of litigation that can arise between partners and investors in the sector.
Law students from African universities appreciated the quality of the debates during this conference, particularly the procedural issues of the need to obtain mining exploration and exploitation permits and the need for transparency in mining production.
Leave a Reply