At the UN, Mali Presents Resource Control and Domestic Financing as Its Economic Line

Mali used its address to the United Nations General Assembly on 28 September 2026 to present control of natural resources and domestic financing as the core of its economic line. Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop delivered the statement on behalf of His Excellency General Assimi Goïta, President of the Transition, on the final day of the general debate of the 81st session. His Excellency General Assimi Goïta did not travel to New York, as in previous sessions.

For investors and operators, the economic commitments carry the most weight. In a multilateral setting, they restate the direction Bamako has already taken in its mining sector: more state control, more local processing and less reliance on external aid.

What Bamako put on the record

The statement tied sovereignty to economic choices. According to Afrikinfos-Mali’s account of the speech, Diop said sovereignty must allow Mali to control its economic decisions, add value to its natural resources and strengthen its productive base. He placed this within Vision Mali Kura 2063 and the National Strategy for Emergence and Sustainable Development (SNEDD 2024-2033).

Three economic commitments stand out:

• Resources. Burkina24 reports that control and value addition of mineral resources, notably gold and lithium, were among the stated priorities. The statement also listed local processing and national production capacity.

• Financing. Diop said international aid, however useful, cannot on its own drive a country’s development. Bamako intends to favour domestic resource mobilisation, productive investment and new financing mechanisms.

• Spending. Public expenditure should shift toward productive sectors, basic social services and the training and employment of young people and women.

The statement also extended sovereignty to technology. Diop cited the creation of the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Centre of Mali. “AI must not only be a technology we consume. It must become a technology we master,” he said, as quoted by Burkina24 (TMG translation).

The published accounts attach no figures, timelines or budget allocations to these commitments. TMG had not obtained the full official text at the time of writing. The quotations above follow press accounts and should be checked against the official text.

From podium to policy: the framework already in place

The speech announced no new measure. It restated, for an international audience, a model Bamako has been building since 2023.

State participation. The 2023 mining code raised Mali’s potential ownership in mining projects from 20% to 35%. According to Ecofin Agency, this combines three parts:

• a free 10% stake,

• up to 25% acquired on commercial terms,

• 5% reserved for local investors.

In September 2025, decrees applied these terms to the Sadiola and Syama gold mines and the Goulamina and Bougouni lithium mines. The state’s stakes became non-contributory and non-dilutable, with priority dividend rights.

Domestic financing. The “new financing mechanisms” cited in New York already exist in concrete form. Mali created its Energy, Water and Transport Infrastructure Development Fund in 2023, and only mining permit holders pay into it, Reuters reported via MINING.COM. Contributions include 1% of quarterly turnover. The fund mobilised CFAF 109.14 billion between 1 January 2025 and 30 June 2026. The finance minister said the fund could be leveraged to raise up to CFAF 500 billion.

Production. The model has cost volume. Industrial gold output fell to 42.2 tonnes in 2025, from a record 66.5 tonnes in 2023, amid disputes between the state and operators. It recovered to 23.5 tonnes in the first half of 2026, above the government’s forecast of 21.2 tonnes, according to Mines Ministry data reported by Reuters. The full-year target is 43.2 tonnes.

TMG reading: the UN statement signals continuity. Revenue capture comes first, through equity, levies and arrears recovery. The first-half 2026 rebound suggests output can recover under these terms, though one half-year is not yet a trend.

Who is concerned

Mining operators are the first audience of the economic message. Lenders and partners weighing their exposure to Mali and the AES come next.

Actor What the speech signals What to verify Gold producers (B2Gold, Barrick, Allied Gold, Resolute) Continued priority on state control and local value addition Any new processing or refining obligation, and how it applies to existing conventions Lithium operators (Goulamina, Bougouni) Lithium named alongside gold as a resource to control and add value to Whether local processing requirements extend beyond concentrate New entrants Mali remains open to projects under the 2023 code Permit flow, such as the Menankoto large-scale permit granted to B2Gold in August 2026 Lenders and development partners Aid is described as useful but insufficient; domestic resources come first Terms of any borrowing against the mining-financed infrastructure fund AES and external partners Cooperation offered to partners that respect Mali’s sovereignty and strategic choices Which partners sign concrete agreements, and on what terms

The priority dividend rights attached to the state’s stakes matter for private shareholders. They determine how cash flows are shared once mines generate profits.

Security and diplomacy: Bamako’s stated positions

The security passages frame the economic line. The points below are the Malian government’s stated positions, as reported. TMG has not independently verified them.

• Diop linked the Sahel’s security crisis to the 2011 NATO intervention in Libya, a position Mali has defended at previous sessions, Burkina24 notes.

• Bamako accused Ukraine of supporting armed groups operating in the Sahel. It presented this as part of a wider effort to destabilise Sahelian states.

• The minister highlighted the Confederation of Sahel States (AES), created on 6 July 2024 in Niamey, its unified force and cooperation with Russia against terrorism, according to Afrikinfos-Mali.

• Mali called for the lifting of unilateral coercive measures and for greater African representation in multilateral institutions. It also welcomed the strategic review of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel.

For economic actors, the relevant point is the partnership filter. Diop said Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger remain open to cooperation with partners that respect their sovereignty, territorial integrity and strategic choices. That criterion will shape which financiers, contractors and offtakers gain access to projects.

What to watch

A UN statement sets direction. Budgets, decrees and production data will show whether it holds. Five indicators will test the line set out in New York:

1. The 2027 finance bill. Whether spending shifts toward productive sectors and youth employment, and how much of the budget relies on domestic revenue.

2. Second-half gold output. Whether industrial production reaches the 43.2-tonne target for 2026, with Loulo-Gounkoto as the main swing factor.

3. The infrastructure fund. The first projects it finances and the terms of any borrowing leveraged on mining contributions.

4. Local processing rules. Any order or decree that turns the priority on value addition into binding obligations for gold or lithium operators.

5. The AI and Robotics Centre. Its budget, partners and mandate, which the speech did not specify.