By: African business

Farmers in the villages of Nigeria’s northern state of Zamfara are facing a double jeopardy.

Soil and rock in the region contain gold, providing financial incentives for them to undertake artisanal mining – small-scale subsistence mining performed with basic tools. But added to the inherent risks in this process is the fact the local ore contains lead. This has resulted in widespread lead poisoning as locals breathe in lead dust as well as eat food and drink water contaminated by the metal.

In the early 2010s, it was estimated that hundreds of children died and thousands were permanently disabled in what Human Rights Watch called the worst lead poisoning epidemic in modern history before coordinated treatment from international partners was made available.

To make matters worse, the region has faced violence by rival armed groups looking to control the gold trade, leaving thousands of people dead.

Now Nigeria is seeking ways to end the twin problems. President Bola Tinubu’s administration is engaging the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – identified as the prime destination of gold smuggled out of Nigeria – to help staunch the illegal flow. This formed the subject of discussion in a meeting in late October between Nigeria’s minister of solid minerals Dele Alake and the UAE ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Al Shamsi.

“In the mining sector, we see significant opportunities for collaboration,” said Alake. “While there is considerable trade in gold, much of it remains illegal, with a large portion of Nigerian gold ending up in the UAE unlawfully.”

The minister called for both countries to work together to put in place strategies to stop the illegal trade while facilitating and regulating a legitimate trade in gold that would be mutually beneficial. It was agreed at the meeting that a technical committee would be created to work out the strategies for collaboration.

Cracking down on the illegal trade

Mining remains a key area of common interest for both countries. Nigeria’s minerals are in global demand while the UAE is a major hub for refining, the jewellery trade and re-exports. Gold is Dubai’s second-most valuable export after oil, with the city home to gold vaults, jewellery-making facilities and refineries.

The Emirates, however, has long had a reputation as a hub for the illegal trade. According to a report released in May by Swissaid, the UAE was by far the main destination for African smuggled gold in 2022, with some 405 tonnes of undeclared output from Africa ending up there.

From 2012-22, some 2,569 tonnes of African gold worth around $115bn reached the country.

Each year, between 321 and 474 tonnes of artisanal gold are produced in Africa without being declared, equating to a value of between $24bn and $35bn.

The declaration and labelling of artisanal gold is likely to be a major part of any future cooperation: SwissAid recommends that the UAE strengthen customs controls on gold imports, in particular to ensure that the gold has been correctly declared in the country where it was mined. Regulation around hand luggage must be strengthened and more transparency on the true origin of imported gold introduced, it says.

For African countries, the NGO recommends the formalisation of artisanal and small-scale gold mining, tax harmonisation, and increased and tighter controls to combat smuggling.

Growing rapprochement

The pledge to cooperate on mining is part of a growing rapprochement between both countries after relations were strained by a UAE visa ban that targeted Nigerians, and the suspension of Emirates and Etihad Airlines flights to Nigeria.

In September 2023, it was confirmed that UAE-based flag carriers Emirates and Etihad Airlines would resume flights to Nigeria as part of a wide-ranging deal between Bola Tinubu and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, which also included the repeal of the visa ban and pledges of billions of dollars of UAE investments into Nigeria. The UAE had stopped issuing visas to Nigerians in 2022 when Emirates suspended flights, citing its inability to repatriate funds from the country then led by President Muhammadu Buhari.