The West African nation of Guinea is rich in mineral wealth. Guinea’s artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sector is valued at $300 million per year, directly supporting over 245,000 miners.
ASGM is major economic activity in several sub-regions of Guinea where it generates between 8,065-12,904 billion Guinean francs per year. Migration is a common feature in Guinea’s ASGM sector. Indeed, about 15% of ASGM miners are nationals of neighboring West African countries, 40% are Guineans originating away from the extractive region, and 45% are Guineans originating from the extractive region.
Annual gold production from ASGM in Guinea is estimated at 32 tonnes from around 350 sites, almost half of which use mercury. Total mercury use is estimated at 42 tonnes per year. The sector is still in the early stages of formalization, with few grassroots groups and cooperatives incorporated within a national union, and entities often face difficulties associated with issuing administrative documents due to issues with land availability and the mining cadaster.
To demonstrate its commitment to working towards environmentally sound management of mercury, Guinea signed and ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury in October 2014. This ratification was made with the aim of protecting human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and discharges of mercury and mercury compounds.
Key Figures from Guinea
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65% of those involved in ASGM are women
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42 tonnes estimated annual mercury use in ASGM
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300 million USD yearly contribution of ASGM to Guinea's economy
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more than 245,000 people directly engaged in the ASGM sector
Guinea's Approach
To tackle issues such as mercury contamination and land degradation, the planetGOLD Guinea project will engage local stakeholders and a strong set of co-financing partners. The project includes a partnership with large-scale mining company AngloGold Ashanti, the first such partnership in the planetGOLD programme. In addition, the project facilitates access to international markets. A major gold refiner has committed to buying $10 million of responsibly produced gold from Guinean miners if due diligence standards can be met.
The project aims to reduce mercury use in the country by a total of 12.15 tonnes over its five-year life.
The project will reach 4,300 project beneficiaries, including 3,000 men and 1,000 women. This includes individuals directly involved in ASGM production as well as workers providing related services to the ASGM communities, including gold traders, exporters, community members, government officials, representatives of artisanal miners' associations and private sector actors.
Key Strategies
Formalize the ASGM sector by collaborating with cooperatives, industrial mines and regulators | 
Enhance uptake of effective, realistic and sustainable mercury-free technologies |
Share knowledge and support local capacity building to spread better practices | 
Promote financial inclusion and |
Photo Gallery
Other planetGOLD countries
planetGOLD project sites in Guinea