Ugandan authorities have released two trucks carrying minerals from Rwanda after holding them at the Katuna border for three months.
The Spedag trucks were seized on August 2 while heading to Mombasa with about 40 tonnes of tantalum and tin valued at roughly $750,000, or Rwf650 million. The cargo belonged to Mineral Supply Africa, a mining company operating in Rwanda.
Officials in Uganda had said the shipment was moving under forged tracking certificates. But Komarovic Julija, speaking for Mineral Supply Africa, said the trucks were later freed after Ugandan authorities established that the documents were genuine.
Rwanda’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Soraya Hakuziyiramye, welcomed the release and said the two governments had discussed the issue. “The trucks were released back to the mining company and this is a good development,” she said, adding: “We are alert to ensure that nothing of the sort happens to the minerals again before they are shipped.”
Rwanda’s Foreign Ministry had contacted Uganda three weeks after the seizure, asking for the trucks to be released and insisting the papers had been issued legally by the Rwanda Mining Board. Uganda replied that the matter had been referred to the relevant authorities.
The company has faced similar trouble before. In 2015, Mineral Supply Africa lost a 24-tonne container of coltan valued at $1 million, which it said was stolen at the Dar es Salaam port while in transit to China.
Mineral exports remain a sensitive issue in the region because of concerns over “conflict minerals” said to help finance rebel activity in eastern DR Congo. That concern led to the introduction of a mineral traceability system for countries bordering DR Congo.
