Head of Gold Exporters Division: EU Gold Ban Will Fuel Smuggling

Sudanhorizon – Hala Hamza

In his first comments on the European Union Council’s decision to ban imports of gold from Sudan, the head of Sudan’s Gold Exporters Division said the measure is likely to intensify gold smuggling.

On Monday, the Council of the European Union announced a comprehensive ban on the purchase, import, or delivery of gold produced in Sudan. The measures also prohibit the sale, supply, export, or delivery of mercury and cyanide, chemicals commonly used in gold extraction.

Commenting on the decision, Abdel Moneim Al-Siddiq, Head of the Gold Exporters Division, said Sudan has only limited control over its gold sector, noting that the majority of gold production and its revenues are diverted through smuggling channels.

In remarks to Sudanhorizon on Monday, Al-Siddiq said the ban would further encourage smuggling operations, benefiting networks that already control the illicit gold trade and exports. He added that the decision would also negatively affect the state’s already limited revenues from gold production and exports.

He suggested that the government could respond by cooperating with or facilitating additional smuggling networks in an attempt to recover some of the revenue expected to be lost as a result of the ban.

According to Al-Siddiq, such an outcome would increase corruption and lead to further waste of the country’s national resources.

The new EU restrictions are also expected to complicate Sudan’s ability to export gold to the European Union through third countries.

The European measures were adopted as part of the bloc’s efforts to curb industries that could contribute to financing or prolonging the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

The sanctions are the European Union’s first new measures related to the Sudan conflict in several months. The bloc has previously imposed sanctions on a number of parties involved in the fighting.

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