The United States has imposed sanctions on a Rwandan gold refinery accused of smuggling gold from the Democratic Republic of Congo, a move welcomed by the British government which has announced new funding for mineral traceability initiatives.
The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed Aldango Ltd, a Kigali-based gold refinery, on its sanctions list on Tuesday, citing its involvement in the illicit trade of Congolese gold. The designation freezes any US assets held by the company and prohibits American entities from doing business with it.
According to a Treasury statement, Aldango has “processed gold that was smuggled from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country where armed groups and criminal networks have profited from the illicit exploitation of mineral resources.” The statement also noted that such smuggling “feeds instability, fuels conflict and undermines the rule of law in the region.”
The DRC government has long accused Rwanda of supporting rebel groups that control illegal mining operations in eastern Congo, a charge Kigali denies. Rwanda has positioned itself as a hub for gold refining in the Great Lakes region, but critics say its oversight of the sector remains weak.
The British government, which has made conflict mineral traceability a pillar of its post-Brexit trade policy, announced a £3.5 million funding package for the Better Gold Initiative for Eastern DRC. The programme, run by the Swiss non-profit Better Gold Association, aims to certify artisanal gold as conflict-free and traceable from mine to market.
“The UK is committed to breaking the link between conflict and natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” said a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson. “This funding will help ensure that Congolese gold benefits local communities rather than armed groups.”
The US move is part of a broader diplomatic effort to pressure Rwanda over its alleged involvement in the M23 rebel group, which has seized significant territory in North Kivu province in recent months. Washington has already suspended some aid and placed sanctions on Rwandan defence officials.
International observers have warned that the gold trade remains one of the most opaque supply chains in the world. The United Nations Group of Experts on the DRC has repeatedly documented cases of gold from Congolese mines being laundered through refineries in neighbouring countries, including Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda.
A spokesman for the Rwandan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, in previous statements, Kigali has dismissed allegations of complicity in smuggling as “baseless” and insisted that it enforces rigorous due diligence standards for its mineral sector.
The sanctions on Aldango Ltd mark the first time Washington has directly targeted a Rwandan gold refinery. Analysts say the move signals a hardening of US policy towards Kigali, which has long been a Western partner in security and development projects in Africa.
The Treasury said the action was taken in coordination with the State Department and the US Agency for International Development (USAID). It warned other entities in the gold supply chain to review their sourcing practices to avoid inadvertently supporting armed groups.
“This sanctions designation demonstrates that the United States will not tolerate the role of gold in perpetuating conflict and human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” said Brian Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.
The UK’s investment in traceability technology is expected to benefit several thousand artisanal miners in eastern DRC, helping them access international markets that demand ethical sourcing certification. The initiative complements existing EU due diligence regulations, which require importers of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold to ensure their supply chains do not finance armed conflict.
But campaigners argue that more needs to be done to close loopholes in the gold trade. “Sanctions on a single refinery are welcome but insufficient,” said Alice Kurniawan, an analyst at Global Witness. “The entire regional trade in gold needs a radical overhaul to cut off the financing of armed groups.”
As the DRC prepares for a controversial presidential election in December, the stability of its eastern provinces remains a primary concern for Western capitals. The mineral trade is deeply intertwined with the political and military dynamics of the region, making sanctions a potent but delicate instrument of foreign policy.
