What countries in Africa does France extract from, or was extracting resources from?

What Françafrique means

The unequal mining arrangements were part of this broader system, which preserved French economic, monetary, and military power across former colonies through preferential trade agreements, securing access to strategic minerals while controlling national currencies via the CFA franc system. At independence, former French colonies were forced to sign agreements that effectively tied independence to continued economic and political dependence on France, and those agreements reserved strategic resources like hydrocarbons, uranium, and other minerals for France.

The countries and what was taken

Niger: Uranium

Within eight years of Niger's formal independence in 1960, France had established SOMAÏR near the northern oasis town of Arlit and begun extracting uranium from While Nigerien soil under terms that granted French state entities a commanding 63.4% stake in the mining company. Over five decades of active mining, approximately 158,889 metric tonnes of uranium were extracted from Niger's northern deserts. Between 2005 and 2020, Niger supplied France with between 15 and 20% of its annual uranium needs. While Nigerien uranium was powering French homes and hospitals, approximately 70% of Nigeriens had no electricity. Niger's military government revoked Orano's (formerly Areva) mining license in mid-2024, ending that arrangement.

Gabon: Oil, manganese

Eramet, a French mining and metallurgy company, operates in Gabon extracting manganese. TotalEnergies, the French energy giant, has been extracting crude oil in Gabon for decades. TotalEnergies EP Gabon's crude oil production reached 16,000 barrels per day in 2025, generating revenues of $418 million that year.

Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville): Oil

TotalEnergies currently produces 65,000 barrels of oil per day in the Republic of Congo, where the Moho Nord field alone accounts for nearly 50% of Congo's daily oil output. The company committed over $500 million to expand the Moho Nord complex.

Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast): Cocoa, oil, strategic minerals

A 1961 defense treaty with Côte d'Ivoire, Dahomey (now Benin) and Niger classed oil, gas, uranium, thorium, lithium and beryllium as strategic, and reserved priority sales of those minerals to France once domestic needs were met. Cocoa from Côte d'Ivoire, the world's largest cocoa producer, has been another pillar of France's resource access.

Mali and Burkina Faso: Gold

During the colonial period, France extensively exploited gold resources in West Africa, particularly in areas that are now Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso. After independence, French companies maintained a significant presence in Mali, which is the 6th largest African gold producer. Both countries have since expelled French forces and are reassessing French commercial arrangements.

Senegal: Gas, gold, minerals

Rich natural gas deposits were discovered in Senegal, and French energy company TotalEnergies won the rights to extract them. Senegal, one of France's oldest colonies in Africa, has abundant resources including gold, with numerous French companies dominating profitable industries including mining.

Guinea: Bauxite and gold

Guinea was heavily exploited by France. The country holds a third of the world's bauxite reserves and significant gold deposits.

Chad: Oil

TotalEnergies has operated as a historic player on the African continent with a 15% market share in the distribution of petroleum products across 40 countries. Chad was one of its key oil production sites through the Chad-Cameroon Pipeline, one of Africa's largest oil infrastructure projects.

The three mechanisms

Through three interlocking systems: uranium extraction, the CFA franc currency, and military presence, France engineered a post-colonial arrangement that continued to extract African wealth while African nations held the technical status of sovereign states.

Where things stand now

The arrangement is unraveling fast. The departure of French troops from the African continent signals the end of interventions in Chad, Togo, Gabon, Rwanda, Djibouti, Zaire, Somalia, Ivory Coast, Mali, Libya, and Cameroon, marking the end of Françafrique. Niger revoked Orano's uranium mining license. Mali and Burkina Faso expelled French forces. The question for these countries now is whether resource sovereignty can be turned into actual wealth for their people, or simply replaced by a new set of outside interests. History suggests the transition is never automatic; it requires political will and investment in processing and refining at home so raw materials don't just leave in a different direction.