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The Government of Sierra Leone officially launched the National Strategy for Critical Minerals 2026-2031 on 20 May 2026 at Sierra Leone Mining Week (Freetown International Conference Centre), with Vice President Dr Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh delivering the keynote address alongside Minister of Mines Julius Daniel Mattai. The strategy commits to attracting USD 2.5 billion in exploration and mining investment, establishing 3-5 domestic mineral-processing plants, and achieving USD 1.5 billion in annual value-added mineral exports by 2031 -- up from a current raw-mineral export base of approximately USD 1.3 billion. Scope covers lithium, graphite, bauxite, cobalt, coltan, rutile, diamonds, iron ore, and rare-earth elements, and frames the national minerals agenda under the theme "Responsible Mining, Value Multiplication and Shared Prosperity."

In January 2024, the Sierra Leone Government notified Sierra Rutile Holdings Limited (ASX: SRX) that the reduced royalty rate of 0.5% agreed in the 2021 third-amendment agreement to the Sierra Rutile licence would no longer apply, and that the pre-2001 fiscal regime would govern Area 1 operations retroactively from 1 July 2023. The reversion imposed an estimated USD 12.6 million in additional royalty obligations for the 2023 financial year, rising to USD 25 million+ through 2026. Sierra Rutile issued a suspension notice to government in late January 2024, with Area 1 halting in March 2024; the government directed resumed operations in May 2024 under a new power contract, while the underlying fiscal dispute remained unresolved.

Sierra Leone's National Minerals Agency gazetted the Mines and Minerals Development Regulations 2023 (Statutory Instrument No. 9 of 2023) in May 2023 as the primary implementing instrument for the Mines and Minerals Development Act 2022 (Act 16). The Regulations repeal and replace the 2009 Regulations, establishing operational frameworks across five licence categories. Key provisions include a mandatory 10% non-dilutable free carried interest for the state in large-scale licences, an option for the state to acquire up to 35% additional equity on negotiated terms, mandatory community development agreements (minimum 1% of gross revenue), and environmental impact assessment and environmental bond requirements for all categories.

Sierra Leone's Parliament enacted Act No. 22 of 2023, establishing the Sierra Leone Mines and Minerals Development and Management Corporation (SLMMDMC) as a state body corporate mandated to carry out minerals and mining development, management, and related activities on behalf of the Republic. The Corporation operates through government-approved "project companies" (public-private vehicles) constituted under the parent Mines and Minerals Development Act 2022, with its Board responsible to the Minister for Mines. The Act enables Parliament-approved allocation of specific mineral assets to the Corporation for development, creating the institutional architecture for systematic state participation across Sierra Leone's strategic mineral sector — including rutile, ilmenite, bauxite, diamonds, iron ore, and critical minerals identified in subsequent national strategy instruments. The Act entered into force on 15 June 2023 and is the implementing parent for the Allocated Minerals Regulations (SI No. 11 of 2024).