Burundi : where did the $908 million worth of minerals exported to the Emirates go?

SOS Médias Burundi

Bujumbura, July 17, 2025 — Between 2013 and 2023, the United Arab Emirates imported $1.3 billion worth of minerals from Burundi. Yet, according to consolidated figures from the Burundi Central Bank (BRB) and the United Nations international trade data (COMTRADE), only $430 million was recorded by the Burundian Treasury.
Where did the remaining $908 million go? This colossal hole in state revenue raises serious suspicions of embezzlement and poor governance.

For more than a decade, the United Arab Emirates was Burundi’s main trading partner in the mining sector. Gold, coltan, cassiterite, and rare earths are among the most exported minerals to Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

“These resources represent a significant portion of the foreign currency that Burundi is supposed to earn each year. Yet, the real impact of this revenue on the national development is invisible,” laments a former official at the Burundian Ministry of Finance, now in exile.

Damning figures

According to available data :

Total amount paid by the Emirates (2013–2023) : USD 1.3 billion

Amount actually recorded in the treasury : USD 430 million

Lost revenue : USD 908 million

A gap described as “abysmal” by several economists contacted by SOS Médias Burundi. For them, this budget gap can only be explained by the deliberate capture of mining revenues by well-placed interest networks.

A scandal visible from the very beginning

The alleged embezzlement is not recent. From the very beginning, the gap between the flows declared by the Emirates and those recorded Byron Burundi was glaring.

Between 2013 and 2015, the Emirates reportedly paid approximately $600 million for Burundian minerals. But on the Burundian side, only $1.76 million was recorded in national revenues.

“This represents a loss of more than $598 million in just three years. It’s open plunder,” estimates an independent Burundian economist based in Nairobi.

A worrying institutional opacity

Several factors could explain this situation, according to extractive sector specialists :

The lack of traceability between mining revenues and the national budget.

The existence of shadow brokers or intermediaries in the export chain.

Complicity within financial institutions and customs.

The lack of parliamentary oversight, often reduced to a facade.

“Opaqueness reigns at every level, from the granting of mining permits to the collection of foreign currency. It’s a well-oiled chain of predation,” confides a former financial inspector.

A shortfall with terrible consequences

In a context of acute economic crisis, the missing funds could have :

Funded schools, health centers, and rural roads.

Replenished the BRB’s reserves, stabilizing the Burundi franc.

Reduced external debt and eased tax pressure on the poorest.

“These are hundreds of millions of dollars that could have transformed the country. Instead, we are witnessing the collapse of public services,” denounced an opposition MP who requested anonymity.

The civil society demands accountability

Faced with the scale of the scandal, voices are being raised to demand transparency. Several NGOs, economists, and investigative journalists are calling for :

The creation of an independent commission of inquiry into mining flows.

Burundi’s full membership in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which has been blocked since 2015.

The annual and detailed publication of mining revenues and their use.

“This isn’t just a matter of numbers. It’s a matter of national dignity. The Burundian people have a right to the truth,” says L.N., an activist with the Mineral Justice movement.

A national betrayal

In a country where the majority of the population lives on less than two dollars a day, where clean water, education, and healthcare are sorely lacking, the disappearance of nearly a billion dollars is seen as a collective betrayal.

“If this wealth had been well managed, no child would still be dying from lack of care or food,” sighs a mother I met at a clinic in Kayanza, northern Burundi.

For many citizens, this scandal is not just an economic one. It symbolizes the state’s failure to protect its resources and its people.

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