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Jan 16, 2006

Axmin appoints general manager at passendro to fast track feasibility studies

Toronto, Ontario – Jan 16, 2006, AXMIN Inc. (AXM-TSX Venture) is pleased to announce the appointment of Charles Carron Brown as General Manager of its wholly owned subsidiary, Aurafrique SARL, which holds the Bambari Permits in the Central African Republic. Mr. Carron Brown will be responsible for both the completion of the ongoing pre-feasibility study scheduled to be completed early in the second quarter of 2006 and the subsequent fast tracking of a definitive feasibility study for the Passendro Project with a completion date scheduled for early 2007.

Mr. Carron Brown is a mining engineer from the Royal School of Mines in the United Kingdom with over 20 years of diverse international experience. He has been involved as a mining engineer in both the design and operation of open pit and underground mines on a variety of continents, including Africa and across a range of commodities including gold. In addition, Mr. Carron Brown has worked with governments and the United Nations in the formulation of mineral policy and the executive management of state controlled mining and energy industries.

Chief Executive Officer, Dr Jonathan Forster comments "I am delighted to have Charles joining us, bringing a wealth of experience not only in the practical aspects of turning exploration projects into producing mines, but importantly his experience of working with governments to develop sustainable mining industries. This diverse background, allied to first class leadership experience broadens the skill sets available in AXMIN and enables us to continue with confidence along the development route of establishing not only AXMIN’s but the country’s first gold mine in the Central African Republic."

Program Update

Following a period of reduced activity over Christmas 2005, the drilling program on the Passendro Project has now returned to the level that saw some 54,000 metres of reverse circulation ("RC") and 12,000 metres of core drilled in 2005 utilising drill rigs wholly owned by AXMIN. The two core rigs and two RC rigs have now been supplemented by a man portable core rig, which will provide exploration access onto steeper ground, with a further core rig scheduled to arrive before the end of the first quarter 2006.

The increased drilling capacity is designed to enable both delineation and exploration drilling to run in parallel. The program calls for some 30,000 metres of RC drilling and 9,000 metres of core drilling to be completed by mid year, with the objective being both the upgrading of resource categories within the Passendro area suitable for inclusion into a feasibility study as well as exploration drilling across new targets in the Ndassima area within approximately a 10 km radius of a proposed plant. The most recent resource update, July 2005, at the Passendro Project delineated an indicated resource of 1.072 million ounces (13.2 Mt grading 2.5 g/t Au) plus an inferred resource of 1.109 million ounces (19.3 Mt grading 1.8 g/t Au). The pre-feasibility study in progress is targeting a minimum production profile of 150,000 ounces per annum.

This press release has been reviewed by an in-house qualified person, Dr. Jonathan Forster, Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining in the United Kingdom.

AXMIN is a mineral exploration company with a strong focus on gold in highly prospective properties across central and west Africa.

For more information regarding AXMIN visit our website at www.axmininc.com.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.


For additional information please contact AXMIN Inc.:

 

Jon Forster

Judith Webster

Chief Executive Officer

Manager – Investor Relations

AXMIN Inc.

AXMIN Inc.

Tel: +44 (0)1233 665600 (UK)

Tel: +1 416 368 0993 (Canada)

Fax: +44 (0)1233 643728 (UK)

E-mail: ir@axmininc.com