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The agreement signed with the Union of Russian Shipowners (URS) in 2014 for a two-year period authorizes direct access for vessels not exceeding 5,000 GRT to the fisheries resources in the EEZ, with a total annual catch ceiling of 50,000 tonnes of small pelagic species and an annual licence price set at CFAF 25,000/tonne of catch. An advance contribution to the Fisheries Resources Management Fund of CFAF 15 million/year/vessel is required. The Russian shipowners undertake to annual surveys to evaluate pelagic species resources; to unload 10% of their catch at the port of Bissau for local marketing by a national enterprise; and to invest, on the basis of a plan approved by the Government, in the development of processing industries. Each vessel must employ at least 12 Guinea-Bissau seamen for a wage of US$700/month. This agreement has not been renewed.

The 2010 implementing protocol of the Bilateral Fisheries Agreement with China of 1974 allowed the company China International Fisheries Cooperation (CNFC) to fish a specified maximum tonnage of shrimp, cephalopods and demersal in the Guinea-Bissau EEZ for four years. Under this protocol, the compensation paid by the CNFC has essentially taken the form of investment in the fisheries sector in Guinea-Bissau. The protocol expired in June 2014 and was directly renewed in February 2015 with the Chinese company ZGSC, a subsidiary of CNFC, for a five-year period (2015-2019). ZGSC undertakes to make a payment of CFAF 12 million/vessel/year into the Fisheries Resources Management Fund prior to any application for a licence; (...)

Finally, a Maritime Fisheries Agreement with Senegal has been in force since 1978 and has allowed for the creation of a joint management maritime area. The fisheries resources are shared and managed by a Joint Management Agency under a Management and Cooperation Agreement. The latest implementing protocol of this Convention, signed on 1 April 2016 for a two-year period, sets the possibilities and the price of the fishing licence for small-scale and industrial fishing vessels. The protocol provides that the issuance of industrial fishing licences is subject to the prior payment of a contribution to the Fisheries Resources Management Fund. The contributions range from CFAF 2.5 million/vessel/year to CFAF 10 million/vessel/year according to the type of vessel. (...)

The Development Plan DENARP II (2011-2015) envisaged for 2012 the revision of the Mining and Petroleum Codes to bring them into line with community and international standards. In particular the revision was supposed to oblige operators to undertake environmental impact studies and improve the investment framework. To this end the Decree-Law of 1986 and the Law of 2000 governing the activities of the extractive industry were replaced in 2014 by a Mining and Minerals Code (Law No. 3/2014 of 29 April 2014), for which the implementing regulations have not yet been adopted. DENARP II also provided for Guinea-Bissau's joining the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative; this process is under way, but Guinea-Bissau is still not a member.

According to the World Bank, the exploitation of phosphates at Farim (deposits discovered in 1978) and bauxite at Boé could contribute more than 15% of GDP. The reserves of the five bauxite deposits identified at Boé are estimated at 110 million tonnes, with an alumina (AlO3) and silica (SiO2) content evaluated at 44% and 3.7%, respectively. Since 2007, Bauxite Angola has had an exploitation licence for these deposits; the Governments of Angola and Guinea-Bissau hold 20% and 10%, respectively, of the company's capital. After having updated the environmental and social impact study paving the way for exploitation operations, in 2016 Bauxite Angola was at the technical, economic and financial viability study phase. Bauxite Angola has announced investment of up to US$500 million, also covering rehabilitation of the necessary road network for exports and the first stages of construction of the deep-water port of Buba.

A deposit of heavy mineral sands (ilmenite, rutile and zirconium) has been found in the coastal area at Nhiquim/Varela. Potential industrial reserves are estimated at 780,000 tonnes of concentrated heavy sands. The company PORTO SARL obtained an exploitation and environmental compliance licence in 2012, but exploitation has been suspended by the authorities on the grounds of certain irregularities.

The Government's objective is the sustainable development of the mining potential and the products of small mines and quarries (for public works and construction) through the development of a phosphate and bauxite mine by 2025; the creation of a supportive framework for small-scale mining and quarrying; and the creation of 10,000 jobs in extraction – all within a framework of compliance with environmental standards. The aim is thus to triple the sector's value added (from CFAF 12 billion in 2013 to CFAF 36 billion in 2025).

The 2014 Code provides inter alia for: (...) the carrying out of an environmental impact study for every type of exploitation, and, for large-scale projects, the holding of public consultations; (...)

The third generation of the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper 2012 2017 (GPRSP III), adopted in late 2011, provided the basis for all Mali's development policies and strategies. During its implementation, the GPRSP was complemented by the Priority Actions Plan (PAP) for 2012 2017, and by the Urgent Priority Actions Plan (PAPU) and the Sustainable Recovery Plan (PRED) for 2013 2014. In 2016, the Government reformulated and extended the GPRSP III in a new document, the Strategic Framework for Economic Recovery and Sustainable Development (CREDD), which will serve as a reference framework for economic and financial policies in 2016 2018. (...)

Applications for approval under the Code must be filed with the API Mali (Mali Investment Promotion Agency) single window for business start ups. The monitoring of projects approved under the Investment Code, the control of tax and customs concessions accorded and of investor commitments are entrusted to a Commission (...) The Commission also comprises: (...) the National Directorate of Sanitation and Pollution and Hazard Control. (...)