(Ecofin Agency) - Minerals contribute 70% of Rwanda's exports and 3% of its GDP. However, critics accuse Rwanda of benefiting from rebel-led plundering of mineral resources in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

On March 17, 2025, the European Union unveiled new sanctions against some Rwandan officials. The EU accused the officials of being involved in the ongoing war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the illicit exploitation of Congolese mineral resources. The sanctions effectively target the Gasabo Gold Refinery in Kigali and Francis Kamanzi, head of Rwanda's mining regulator.

Mining has become a pillar of the Rwandan economy in recent years. In 2023, the sector contributed nearly 70% of Rwanda’s total exports and 3% of GDP, earning the country $1.1 billion; gold alone contributed $883 million. 

With a mineral potential valued at $150 billion, Rwanda attracts major foreign investors. For example, in July 2024, Rwanda announced it had partnered with Rio Tinto, the world's second-largest mining group by market capitalization. This was a deal to explore and exploit 3T (tin, tantalum, and tungsten) and lithium deposits. The same year, in February, even the EU had signed a strategic minerals partnership with Kigali.

Plundering Accusations

Now, however, several independent reports and the Congolese government allege that most of the minerals exported by Rwanda are smuggled from the DRC. The DRC accuses Rwanda of supporting the rebels that recently invaded its eastern regions, and asks Kigali’s international partners to stop cooperating with President Kagame’s country.

"The transit of gold through Rwanda's only gold refinery, Gasabo Gold Refinery, contributes to the illicit export through Rwanda of illegally mined gold. Gasabo Gold Refinery has therefore exploited armed conflict, instability or insecurity in the DRC, in particular through the illicit exploitation or trade of natural resources," reads an official note signed by Kaja Kallas, Vice-President of the European Commission. The document added that Francis Kamanzi, head of Rwanda's mining regulator, was taking advantage of the conflict and instability in the DRC, through illegal trade and mining.

The Congolese government welcomed the EU sanctions. “These sanctions are the first step in the fight against Rwanda's plundering of the DRC's mineral wealth,” the Congolese Ministry of Communication wrote in a statement dated March 17, 2025.

Despite these developments, it remains unclear how the sanctions will impact Rwanda’s mining sector or its attractiveness to investors in 2025. Not all refineries in Rwanda face sanctions and global traceability mechanisms have so far failed to prevent minerals looted by rebels in the DRC from entering international supply chains.

This article was initially published in French by Emiliano Tossou

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho