"WADME: Where corporate lawyers meet decision-makers from the African extractive sector" Me Hamidou Dramé, Lawyer and Vice-Chairman of WADME 2025

Can you introduce and present the African Mining and Energy Law Weekend to our readers?

I am Me Hamidou Dramé, a lawyer at the Guinean Bar, partner at Guilex Avocats, a business law firm specialising in mining and energy law. I am Vice-Chairman of the Organising Committee of the African Mining and Energy Law Weekend (WADME), which will take place in Conakry from 9 to 11 May 2025 at the Kaloum Hotel.

WADME is the annual event that brings together legal professionals, decision-makers and investors from Africa's mining and energy sector to discuss and propose solutions to the major legal issues related to the research, development and exploitation of mining and energy resources (renewable and fossil) on the African continent. The event will take place over three (3) days and will include a series of conferences, training workshops and a visit to a mining site led by renowned specialists and experts, as well as networking opportunities for participants (ministerial authorities, general directors, legal directors, lawyers, consultants, academics and other professionals from the mining and energy sector in Africa).

The WADME is organised by the Institut de Formation et d'Expertise Juridique in collaboration with the Guinean Bar Association. The WADME is supported by the Guinean Government through the Ministry of Mines and Geology, the Chamber of Mines of Guinea and the African Legal Support Facility (ALSF).

To register for the WADME, simply complete the registration form on the event's website: www.wadme.org or send an email to : contac@wadme.org.

What are the themes that will be addressed during this WADME edition?

During the 2025 edition of the WADME, which will take place from 9 to 11 May in Conakry in French and English, panellists and participants will debate and learn about topics related to critical minerals, farm-out and royalty contracts, the legal structuring of investments with treaties, shareholder agreements between the State and mining investors, negotiating electricity purchase contracts, financing local content, securing mining titles with digital mining cadastres, digitising national electricity companies, and memorandums of understanding to settle disputes between investors and African governments. Keynotes will also be given by senior executives from companies in the African extractive sector and major international institutions such as OHADA. It should be noted that the panellists and participants confirmed to date for the 2025 event come from more than 20 countries across the continent.

What makes WADME a unique event in Africa?

As I am wont to say, the WADME is a unique event in Africa for three main reasons:

• It focuses exclusively on the legal issues facing the mining and energy sectors in Africa. WADME is a major forum where corporate lawyers, government lawyers and attorneys meet with decision-makers from Africa's extractive sector;
• It offers a space for meetings and practical training for legal professionals, in the presence of economic and political decision-makers, to better advise their clients and employers in transactions and disputes related to these sectors;
• WADME also serves as a framework for advocacy, awareness-raising and cooperation to promote African expertise in natural resource management and create synergies between African and international players working on mining and energy-related projects.