The German automobile industry is heavily reliant on aluminum production and therefore on the import of Guinean bauxite.

Therefore, over the past five yers, the federal government has granted $ 293 million to mining companies in Guinea as a guarantee.

However, a petition signed by more than 100,000 Germans has just changed the situation around. It brings to light the appalling conditions of bauxite mining that are drying up the region. Something the Germans were not aware of until now.

However, the federal government is turning a deaf ear as the Guinean population begins to run out of water in the northwestern part of the country.

Guinea, a former French colony, is the third largest producer of bauxite in the world after Australia and China. Germany is the third largest importer after the United States and China.

This conflict arises as China is attempting to buy Guinean bauxite to sustain its own economy.