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# [MADAGASCAR] Mining: 1,650 Pending Applications After 16-Year Freeze Lifted
- URL: https://businessoi.media/en/madagascar-mines-1-650-dossiers-en-attente-apres-la-levee-du-gel-de-16-ans-en/
- Published: 2026-07-22T02:56:55.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-22T02:56:55.000Z
- Description: Six months after lifting a 16-year moratorium, approximately 1,650 mining permit applications await processing in Madagascar. Gold remains excluded. The extractive sub-sector already posted +4% growth in 2024.
- Author: Emmanuel TAOCHY
- Tags: Madagascar, Économie, Investissement, Revue matinale, #en

**The rush for permits has begun.** On January 29, 2026, the Malagasy government ended a sixteen-year moratorium on mining permit issuance. Since then, approximately 1,650 permit applications have piled up in the registers of Madagascar Mining Cadastre Office (BCMM), reflecting considerable appetite from operators and investors for the country subsoil resources.

## Sixteen years frozen: a structural brake

Introduced in 2010 following political instability, the moratorium had become a genuine barrier to investment — despite Madagascar possessing one of the world richest subsoil environments: nickel, cobalt, graphite, ilmenite, rare earth elements.

During this period, only 13 kilograms of gold were officially declared against actual production estimated at hundreds of times that figure — revealing the scale of artisanal and illegal extraction.

## Gold still excluded, everything else reopened

Gold remains under moratorium, with the government acknowledging its inability to effectively regulate the gold sector. But for virtually all other mineral substances, new permit issuance has resumed.

Mining Minister Carl Andriamparany stated that mining permits are essential tools allowing operators and investors to work legally. In 2024, the extractive sub-sector had already contributed growth of over 4%, despite the blockage.

## Environmental stakes not to be underestimated

Madagascar hosts some of the planet most threatened and unique ecosystems. The government has announced strengthened environmental impact assessments as a prerequisite for permit issuance.

## Why it matters

With 1,650 applications pending, Madagascar holds a mining investment potential that could radically transform its export revenues and GDP. But governance quality and environmental rigour will determine whether this opening becomes an opportunity or another cycle of under-monetised resources.