The socio-political implications of bauxite mining in Guinea: A commodity chain perspective

For more than 60 years, the everyday lives of Guineans have been shaped by the decisions of a few multinational companies engaged in aluminum production. This sector – the country's most important – is highly concentrated, vertically integrated, capital-intensive and strongly interconnected. Focusing on two historical “crises of chain governance” (the 1970s and 2000s) which temporarily increased the political clout of many resource rich countries, this article identifies the policy options facing Guinea's decision makers and describes the structural basis for corporate influence, namely infrastructural power, capital relations and corporate chains of command. To improve living conditions in Guinea, changes will be needed to be made throughout the commodity chain for aluminum, solutions which also involve consumer countries.