Kian Smith Gold Refinery, which is setting up the first gold refinery in Nigeria, is a key sponsor of the first ever West Africa gold conference, Tuesday and Wednesday.
Tagged Gold West Africa, the regional conference by MinVest, which will bring together players from different countries, is a strategic collaborative effort between Kian Smith Gold Refinery and Noemdek.
“This is the first regional conference in West Africa on gold” Nicole Smith, Gold West Africa event manager, told BusinessDay recently.
“West Africa has a thriving underground gold economy that if regulated, could unlock the West African region as the gold market centre of Africa” she noted.
Smith said the event will bring 150 critical gold sector stakeholders from over 14 countries together with the aim of establishing a strong West African public and private sector lobby around the precious metal that could become the economic game changer for the region.
According to the official information made available on its Twitter handles @KianSmithCo and @GoldWAfrica, the company said some of the speakers expected at the two-day event include Olufemi Babem, associate director, Mining Centre of Excellence, KPMG, Nigeria; Yves Bertan, executive director, Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) and Uwe Naeher, head, Conflict Mineral Certification Project, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the Federal Bureau of Geosciences and Natural Resources.
Others include Lara Smith, managing director and founder, Core Consultants, United Kingdom; Rodica Ella Ivan, Industrial Development Officer, Environment Department, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Amanda Lumun Feese, Technical Adviser on mining strategy and governance, Mineral Sector Support for Economic Development (MinDiver),Ministry of Mines and Steel Development (MMSD).
Also expected to give their mind blowing insights are Toussaint Bamouni, director general, Chamber of Mines, Burkina Faso; Segun Lawson, chief executive officer and director, Thor Explorations Limited; Dauda Yakubu, director of operations, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigeria and Yomi Jemibewon, co-founder, Cardinal Stone.
According to Smith, the company is playing a part in finding solutions that ensure Africa benefits from its own resource wealth.
By doing this, the company positions itself as solution-oriented to the gold market challenges and equally stands to contribute significantly to the economy of Nigeria and Africa.
“Creating an internationally recognised gold market centre in Africa is important,” said Smith, adding that “Africa must start to benefit from its own resource wealth.”
He added that formalising the small-scale gold sector as well as creating a favourable trade environment will go a long way to developing the gold economy of Africa.
According to Smith, critical to the conference is to explore important issues around gold policy and how to strengthen the gold value chain.
Also, the conference will explore gold trade and its impacts on monetary policy as well as examining the status and trends of West African gold consumption, and how this market can be encouraged.
In addition, the conference will explore strategies to develop world-class gold projects from exploration to production; the need and benefits of formalising the artisanal gold mining sector and the importance of facilitating investment and funding throughout the value chain.
Kian Smith Gold Refinery, located in Ogun State, will be operational soon.
JOSEPH MAURICE OGU
