Whoever wins faces the daunting task of feeding the West African country’s poor and navigating the interests of global powers seeking critical minerals, analysts say.

Axis International Ltd is seeking $28.9 billion from Guinea at a World Bank tribunal after the West African country revoked its permit to operate a bauxite mine there this year, the United Arab Emirates-based company said on Monday.

Mamdi Doumbouya secured almost 87% of the vote, while several opposition figures were either barred from contesting or were in exile. Doumbouya seized power after staging a coup in 2021.

Guineans will vote on Sunday in their first elections since a 2021 coup, with the military junta’s leader poised to extend his rule amid a mining boom.

In 2018, researchers from Bat Conservation International, Cameroon’s University of Maroua and the American Museum of Natural History entered abandoned mining tunnels in Guinea’s Nimba Mountains as part of an environmental and social impact assessment for an iron ore project.

Mining company Axis International said Monday it was seeking World Bank arbitration against Guinea for withdrawing its right to operate a major bauxite mine in the west African country.Guinea, which has been run by a junta since a coup in 2021,

The UAE-based mining firm Axis International has initiated formal arbitration proceedings against the Republic of Guinea following the revocation of its bauxite mining permit.