BUBANZA, April 1 (ABP) – It is a source of satisfaction that young people are already taking ownership of the mining sector and beginning to get involved in extraction, according to the assessment of the PAEEJ representative in the communes of Bubanza and Mpanda (northwest Burundi), Bora Donatien, contacted by ABP.
In Bubanza commune alone, youth cooperatives operating in the mining sector; both extraction and sales, number 10 since July 2025, and they extract minerals at 12 sites located in the zones of Bubanza, Muramba, and Ntamba. The minerals being extracted include green quartz, white quartz, beryl, and wolframite. Some young people in these mining cooperatives, interviewed on site, mention a lack of knowledge about minerals and insufficient extraction techniques. They called for greater dissemination of information on different types of minerals by the relevant authorities, so that they can report or request laboratory verification whenever they suspect a mineral, according to local sources.
Bora Donatien, PAEEJ representative in the communes of Bubanza and Mpanda, calls on other young people to become aware of the importance of minerals in the country’s development and to take ownership of the sector. Note that in these two communes, 233 cooperatives operating in various sectors are supervised by PAEEJ.