The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank group, last month signalled its growing support for Guinea in protecting its biodiversity as the country expands its mining sector.
Working with the Guinea government, which hosted the Biodiversity Responsible Mining Roundtable on June 8, the IFC aims to help mining investors adopt best practices and develop viable approaches to protecting biodiversity as they expand and spur further growth and development in the country.
“Guinea has abundant mining, agricultural and hydropower resources that are being explored alongside rich biodiversity,” said IFC Africa environment and social department head Seynabou Ba at the roundtable. “[The] IFC will bring together a coalition of stakeholders to identify approaches to addressing biodiversity issues at landscape level rather than simply focusing on individual projects.”
The IFC’s Sustainability Framework and Performance Standards guide companies in this process.
The roundtable explored the effects of mining on terrestrial and marine biodiversity. Solutions for the private sector and the government are being considered.
“The government of Guinea is committed to extracting our mineral resources to meet our development goals, while safeguarding our environment,” said Guinea Mines and Geology Minister Abdoulaye Magassouba. “This roundtable offers an excellent opportunity to work with different stakeholders to raise awareness of established global practices that are effective in taking into account the impacts of mining activity and protecting our ecosystems.”
The IFC is investing in the Guinea mining sector and is ensuring that projects in which it invests are developed in compliance with its Performance Standards intended to safeguard biodiversity and to significantly improve benefits to communities and the local economy.
The IFC’s involvement in the roundtable is part of its client support programme, which aims to address constraints that can derail or hinder an investment by a single client or group of clients.