Mining grounds in Rwanda’s Northern province. Exporters must show that
they have a contract with a prospective mineral buyer before getting the
new certificate. PHOTO | FILE | NMG
Rwanda has launched a new mineral export certificate to curb
allegations of smuggling of precious metals from the Democratic Republic
of Congo.
“The new export
certificate is for all minerals not usually covered by the International
Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) export certificate. The
aim of this certificate is to make sure we can account for all exports
with the right paperwork,” Francis Gatare, the chief executive of Rwanda
Mines Board, told The EastAfrican.
The
country now has two different mineral export certificates namely the
ICGLR mineral export certificate designated for principal minerals of
tin, tungsten and tantalum — commonly known as “The 3 Ts” — and the
second one for the rest of minerals, including gold.
Issuance
of the new certificate started in April, with applicants required to
apply online through the Mineral Certificate Information System, a move
further aimed at curbing irregularities. Exporters must also show that
they already have a contract with a prospective mineral buyer before
getting the new certificate.
“The
certification is important in weeding out bad practices,” said Jean
Malic Kalima, president of the Mining Association, adding, “Small-scale
miners have been reorganised and consolidated to ensure that they make
collective investment groups and streamline their activities. This will
ensure that they are eligible for the licensing under good mining
practices.”
Government officials say
all the country’s mineral exports are traded legitimately, even as a new
report by the UN Security Council said that smuggling of minerals from
DR Congo, mainly gold, is conducted by its neighbours.
The details are contained in a report dated
June 2 from the group of experts on the DR Congo addressed to the United
Nations Security Council.
The report
said that smugglers in eastern DR Congo in areas controlled by armed
groups sold untagged minerals to middlemen, who in turn sold the
minerals across the border in Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania.
The
report said gold smuggled from DR Congo was regularly transported
across Lake Tanganyika to Burundi and to Tanzania last year. Fraudulent
ICGLR certificates were also often used to smuggle minerals to Uganda
and Rwanda, where they were then exported to buyers in the United Arab
Emirates without the issuance of receipts.
According
to the report, Rwanda exported one tonne of gold per month in 2017 and
declared gold exports of 2,163kg, while the UAE officially imported
12,539kg from Rwanda in the first nine months of 2018.
The difference reported in revenue is valued at about $100 million, which the UN Security Council links to smuggling.
No comments:
Post a Comment