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Over the years, many African countries have been exporting a wide variety of minerals and other natural resources to earn much-needed foreign exchange to boost their economies. However, things are changing now as governments in Africa are planning to add value to their natural resources before exporting them to overseas markets.
Efforts are now underway in several African countries to keep stricter control of the continent’s large gold deposits and mineral wealth. The aim is to add value to African minerals before exporting them.
Over the years, many African countries have been exporting a wide variety of minerals and other natural resources to earn much-needed foreign exchange to boost their economies. However, things are changing now as governments in Africa are planning to add value to their natural resources before exporting them to overseas markets.
Rwanda, once again, has taken the lead by establishing its first-ever gold refinery. Located in Kigali Special Economic Zone in Gasabo District, the USD 5 million plant can refine 6 tonnes of gold a month, or about 220 kilogrammes a day. The refinery can process gold from around the African continent thereby eliminating the need to travel long distances to look for a place that can refine Africa’s gold.
Uganda and South Africa have also set up similar refineries to process gold mined in African countries. The DRC’s also opened its first refinery in Ituri Province in July 2019, and the second in South Kivu in March 2020.
Rwanda targets to collect USD 1.5 billion from mineral exports by 2024. Most of the gold in Rwanda is mined from gold located in Miyove village, Gicumbi district, North, Karongi district, West and Nyamagabe district in Southern province.
Rwanda only recently entered the artisanal gold trade in a major way, taking advantage of the political chaos in neighboring Burundi and enforcement actions in the DRC to capture the lion’s share of the South Kivu gold trade. The documented paucity of domestic gold production in Rwanda makes it clear that the vast majority of this gold found in Rwanda is not of Rwandan origin.
In 2014, Rwanda reported USD 8.1 million USD in exports of “other minerals,” which includes gold. This rose to USD 80.06 million in 2016. The same year, the National Institute of Statistics for Rwanda documents how “other unwrought gold (incl. gold plated with platinum), non-monetary” totaled USD 75.52 million in 2016. According to the UN Group of Experts, Rwanda officially exported 2,163 kg of gold in 2018, yet 12,539 kg of gold imported into the UAE was reported as Rwandan in origin.
This swift surge in gold production has not gone unnoticed by the Rwandan government, which publicly celebrates its emergence as one of the region’s most significant gold exporters.
The illicit gold trade in Africa appears to be booming. Despite efforts to introduce traceability and due diligence for the artisanal gold supply chain, only a small fraction of gold is being captured through legal channels.
Some traders and exporters in Africa succeed in staying under the radar of government authorities by undervaluing their gold purchases and exports, declaring only a small percentage while pocketing massive profits—a percentage of which should have been paid in taxes.
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https://trendsnafrica.com/namibias-kokoseb-gold-project-to-expands-its-current-mre/
Gold refineries in Africa will ensure that all private sector players are importing and exporting gold according to the regulatory procedures outlined by each country, with all taxes paid, and with an authentic ICGLR certificate.
