https://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Montreal gold miner Semafo Inc. is coming under criticism for ineffective security measures in Burkina Faso after one of the worst terrorist attacks on employees of a Canadian company.
“We have concerns about just how safe” the situation was for Semafo’s workers and business partners, said Odette Napina, project leader at Organisation pour le Renforcement des Capacités de Développement, an independent group that monitors the social and economic impact of the mining industry in Burkina Faso.
Assailants ambushed a convoy of five buses carrying Semafo employees, contractors and suppliers under military escort last Wednesday in one of the deadliest insurgent attacks in the West African country in recent years. No one has claimed responsibility for the incident. The company on Monday finally provided a clearer picture of the human toll from the raid.
A total of 241 people were attacked and current estimates peg the number of people dead at 39, Semafo said in a statement. Another 60 are injured, 141 people are accounted for but unharmed and one person remains missing, the company said.
“Myself and most of our senior management team are in-country ensuring all those affected are getting the support they require,” Semafo chief executive Benoit Desormeaux said in the statement. “Our priority continues to be their safety, security and well being.”
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