Cameroon Orders Closure of Nearly 200 Illegal Gold Mining Firms

Cameroon has ordered the immediate closure of nearly 200 illegal gold mining companies as authorities intensify efforts to curb unregulated semi-mechanised artisanal mining operations across the country.

The directive was issued by Fuh Calistus Gentry, who instructed all unlicensed operators to dismantle their mineral processing units or face forced demolition and legal prosecution by the state.

The crackdown is focused primarily on the mineral-rich East and Adamawa regions, where informal gold mining activity has expanded rapidly amid sustained increases in global gold prices.

The enforcement campaign follows major discrepancies revealed in recent data from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). Cameroon officially recorded just 22.3 kilograms of gold exports in 2023, while the United Arab Emirates reported importing more than 15 metric tons of gold from Cameroon during the same period — almost 700 times the officially declared export volume.

The figures have raised concerns over large-scale smuggling, tax losses, and weak oversight within Cameroon’s artisanal and small-scale mining sector.

Authorities say the reforms are aimed at improving traceability, increasing state revenues, and strengthening regulatory control over gold production and exports.

Cameroon’s actions reflect a broader shift across Africa, where governments are tightening oversight of strategic mineral resources and seeking greater economic participation in mining sectors historically dominated by informal operators and foreign-owned firms.