Guinea has banned the export of unrefined gold in an effort to promote domestic processing of the precious metal.

The policy – effective immediately – comes after Guinea’s President Mamadi Doumbouya met industrial and artisanal gold producers and buyers, and aims to boost the economy and create more jobs.

“Guinea will now require its gold to be processed within its own borders.

Guinea is Africa’s sixth largest gold producer, according to the World Gold Council.

Other African nations have taken similar steps to increase domestic processing and value addition in the mining sector in recent years.

In Tanzania and Uganda, the export of unprocessed minerals and metals such as gold and copper is already banned, while Ghana is set to ban raw gold exports by 2030.

Africa’s top lithium producer, Zimbabwe, has banned concentrate exports of the metal used to make batteries from 2027.

Gold is one of Guinea’s main exports, shipping more than 22 tonnes of the metal in the first quarter of this year, according to the authorities.

A new refinery is near completion in the capital, Conakry, where the country’s gold will be sent before processing and export. It has a reported capacity of 250 tonnes a year so should be able to handle the country’s current production.

Foreign companies operating in the country have been warned that they risk losing their licenses and having their mining contracts terminated if they violate the directive.

Guinea is also the world’s largest producer of bauxite, used to make aluminium.

From Aliyu Askira, Kano

A 30-year old boutique and provision owner Ismail Makaye was feared dead in his girlfriend’s apartment named Fati Cele in Tishama Quarters, Hotoro Kano.

Fati Cele, 28, from Borno State came to Kano over 10 years ago and rented an apartment in Hotoro Quarters.

Neighbors claimed they heard Fati Cele recently shouting for help in the morning that her apartment was on fire.

But when they rushed into the apartment, they saw her boyfriend Ismail Makaye half burnt by fire, though he was still alive but heavily bleeding.

Accordingly, the neighbors quickly reported the incident to Dorayi Police Command which swiftly moved in and arrested Fati and others at the scene and took them to their station.

Some of the neighbors told Daily Asset that Ismail and his girlfriend Fati Cele were no longer on good terms and were separated for some time but later Ismail returned back to Fati’s apartment.

When Daily Asset correspondent visited the Dorayi Police Station, officers who volunteered information on the condition of anonymity because they were a bit authorised to talk to the press admitted Fati Cele was being held and investigation was ongoing.

Fati Cele is a popular Tiktoker at a Gala Night Club in Sabon Gari Quarters and has 32,500 followers on Tiktok from which she is making a lot of money and investing in other businesses.

Katsina State Gov, Dikko Radda has extended the offer of automatic employment to indigenes of the state who graduate with first-class degrees from higher institutions across the country.

Radda announced this on Sunday during the grand finale and award presentation of the maiden Katsina State Students’ Week held at Bayero University, Kano (BUK).

The governor said the initiative was designed to attract the brightest minds into the state civil service and strengthen its capacity for effective service delivery.

“When I assumed office, I introduced automatic employment for students who graduated with first-class degrees.

“Today, I am pleased to expand the offer to all Katsina State students across the country who graduate with first-class degrees from this year onward.

“This decision is deliberate. If we recruit a significant number of first-class graduates into the civil service, Katsina State will have one of the most efficient and productive civil services in the country within the next 10 to 15 years.

“You will have a civil service that can compete favourably with any state in the federation and even rival those at the federal level because we are bringing highly talented individuals into the service,” he said.

He also explained that his administration had prioritised the settlement of outstanding scholarship obligations and increased bursary allowances to encourage students to remain in school and pursue their academic aspirations.

According to him, the government has significantly reduced the number of out-of-school children in the state and prevented many from drifting into social vices.

The governor said education remained a top priority for his administration, which had consistently allocated a substantial share of the state budget to the sector.

He said that the government had recruited more than 10,000 teachers, constructed new schools and rehabilitated educational infrastructure across the state.

He urged students to continue striving for excellence and to contribute meaningfully to the development of Katsina State.

He added that the outstanding performance of Katsina students had made him proud to be both a son and governor of the state.

The Vice-Chancellor of BUK, Prof. Haruna Musa-Muhammad, described Radda as a student-friendly governor.

Musa-Muhammad commended the upward review of the state scholarship scheme and expressed the institution’s readiness to partner with the Katsina State Government in advancing educational development.

The convener of the event and Special Assistant to the Governor on Student Matters, Muhammad Nagaske, said the Students’ Week was organised to foster collaboration, promote academic excellence, encourage cultural exchange and discover talents among students from various institutions.

The event brought together Katsina students from higher institutions in Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Borno and other states.

Participants who excelled in the week-long activities, including sports, academic competitions and cultural displays, received various prizes.