PORT SUDAN, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Sudan's gold export revenues have reached 1.5 billion U.S. dollars from January to October this year, official SUNA news agency reported on Thursday, citing a government official.
"The country's gold exports have continued to rise through official channels, where 1.5 billion dollars have been deposited in the Central Bank of Sudan as gold export revenues since the beginning of this year until October," SUNA quoted Mohamed Tahir Omar, director-general of the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company, as saying.
He said that 26 tons of gold have been exported through official channels, while actual production is reported to exceed 50 tons.
Authorities have adopted measures to encourage miners to export their production through official channels, he said, adding that those measures have contributed to a significant increase in revenue.
Omar attributed the decline in gold production to the cessation of operations in mines in conflict-hit areas. "Mines in conflict zones like Darfur have fallen out of government control following the Rapid Support Forces' (RSF) takeover of most of the region, making these resources out of the state's reach," he said.
According to data released by the company, Sudan's gold production had peaked between 2017 and 2022, with an average of 107 tons per year.
In 2022, gold constituted 46.3 percent of the country's non-oil exports, valued at 2.02 billion dollars out of a total of 4.36 billion dollars in exports, according to statistics from the Central Bank of Sudan.
In September 2023, Sudanese authorities reported a significant decline in the country's gold production, which had dropped to just two tons between April 15 and the end of August of that year. Sudan relies heavily on gold exports to obtain foreign currency.
According to earlier United Nations reports, the Sudanese economy has declined by up to 42 percent due to the ongoing conflict.
Sudan has been gripped by a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary RSF since mid-April 2023. According to the most recent update by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, the deadly conflict has resulted in more than 27,120 deaths.
The conflict has displaced over 14 million people, either inside or outside Sudan, according to the latest estimates by the International Organization for Migration. ■