Barrick, Mali Unions Avert Planned Mine Strike

Barrick Mining and unions at the Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex in Mali reached agreement on 21 September, calling off walkouts set for 28 September. Bani Sacko said, "On Monday the 21st [21 September], after a meeting, an agreement was reached and the strike action has since been called off." He said apparently all other strike actions have also been called off. Abdoulaye Coulibaly said, "The strike threat has been resolved." Plans had included a four-day Loulo-Gounkoto walkout, a five-day Food & Events Africa walkout, and separate four-day strikes at Somilo SA and Gounkoto SA. Loulo-Gounkoto unions submitted 15 demands. Bloomberg first reported the deal on Sunday; Barrick and a union official confirmed it to Reuters. After Mali's 2023 mining code increased the state's share of mining revenues, authorities detained Barrick employees, sought hundreds of millions of dollars in alleged unpaid dues, and seized roughly 3 tonnes of gold. Barrick halted operations in January 2025 and filed for international arbitration. Mali placed Loulo-Gounkoto under provisional state administration in June 2025. A November settlement returned control to Barrick, which resumed operations. The labor deal removes an immediate disruption risk; government relations remain sensitive. CONTESTED: no factual disputes found Source-set limitation: 1 left / 0 center / 1 right; no center-rated coverage found