Mali now has a general as head of government of the transition which should officially have ended on March 26, 2024. But despite a declining budget deficit and a resumption of economic activity with growth of nearly 5% in 2024 , the political situation actually weighs on the economic outlook, underlines the African Development Bank.
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“ The main risks to the outlook are the indefinite postponement of the presidential election » explains the African Development Bank (AfDB) about the economic future of Mali. And the arrival of a general at the head of the transition will not reassure the markets, notes Adama Wade, head of the pan-African economic media Financial Afrik. “ Mali is a country that is closely followed by investors, due to the uncertainties linked precisely to its bonds issued on the financial market of the West African Economic and Monetary Union. So there, this will actually deteriorate the borrowing conditions of the State of Mali since it is an uncertainty which continues », Estimates the Mauritanian journalist.
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Two years ago, this political instability deprived the Mali access to the financial markets of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), and to external budgetary support.
Mining issues
Another notable event in recent days is the detention for several days of managers of the mining company Resolute, released this Wednesday, November 20 against the agreement to pay 160 million dollars relating to taxes and customs duties, in particular. A method which, without necessarily calling into question the legitimacy of the tax, questions the expert Adama Wade: “ We are faced with a lack of guarantee for investors and faced with a State which can imprison an economic operator based on a simple dispute without it going through a judge, in the mining sector where the standards are rather the same from one country to another, from one mining country to another “.
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The expert adds that he thinks this could be a deterrent, in a context of disputes over the Malian gold mining sector. Mali has begun a vast reform of its mining sector to maximize revenues from the mining sector. To do this, the State has notably increased its participation in the country’s gold mines.