{"id":55421,"date":"2025-10-08T03:53:42","date_gmt":"2025-10-08T00:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/?p=55421"},"modified":"2025-10-08T03:53:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T00:53:42","slug":"in-qabqaba-the-gold-that-changed-the-course-of-the-floods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/08\/in-qabqaba-the-gold-that-changed-the-course-of-the-floods\/","title":{"rendered":"In Qabqaba: The Gold That Changed the Course of the Floods"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sudan Events \u2013 Agencies<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the autumn of 2024, the infrastructure of the city of Abu Hamed, in Sudan\u2019s River Nile State, was severely damaged by heavy rainfall and flash floods. This occurred despite warnings from the Sudanese Meteorological Authority\u2019s Early Warning Unit, which had classified the danger level as \u201cextreme.\u201d Local organizations reported the collapse of 24,104 homes and 150 service facilities. Yet nature alone was not to blame\u2014the widespread effects of mining activities had altered the flow of valleys and streams, reshaping the region\u2019s topography.<\/p>\n

North of Abu Hamed lies Wadi Qabqaba, about 85 kilometers away\u2014a semi-desert plateau interspersed with mountain ranges and rocky hills. Despite its rugged terrain, the area is rich in gold, making it a center for extraction and production since the Meroitic civilization. Qabqaba sits along the Keraf Fault Zone, which extends to the Egyptian border.<\/p>\n

Today, Qabqaba is one of Sudan\u2019s largest and richest gold-mining regions. Mining there is not limited to corporate operations but also includes artisanal or \u201ctraditional\u201d mining, which began in 2008 and expanded rapidly after South Sudan\u2019s secession in 2011\u2014an event that cost Sudan more than 90% of its oil revenue and triggered a prolonged economic crisis. As the Sudanese pound collapsed and insecurity spread during the ongoing war, waves of internal migration brought thousands seeking fortune in the desert goldfields.<\/p>\n

Between 1999 and 2001, joint geological surveys conducted by the French Bureau of Geological and Mining Research and Sudan\u2019s Geological Research Authority confirmed the presence of significant gold deposits across the region.<\/p>\n

Beyond the Glitter<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 2008, Morocco\u2019s Managem Group and its Chinese partner Noryang Mining signed an agreement with Sudan\u2019s Ministry of Minerals, granting them an exploration license covering nearly 14,000 square kilometers in River Nile State. Intensive exploration revealed rich gold reserves.
\nIn 2012, Managem established a production unit operated by its subsidiary Manub, and continued discoveries led to the construction of a modern processing plant that, according to the company, complies with international environmental and social standards.<\/p>\n

In 2021, Managem acquired 65% of Qabqaba\u2019s expansion projects after a deal with China\u2019s Wanbao Mining. The $250 million expansion was expected to raise annual production capacity to 200,000 ounces of gold.<\/p>\n

Field sources confirmed to Atar that Manub\u2014Managem\u2019s operating name\u2014is the main concession holder at Qabqaba, operating two processing plants. Several subcontractors work under its umbrella, including Dal Mining Company, which handles ore transport and operations. Dal operates east of the valley, while Sandra Mining operates in the west. Around them, dozens of companies process mining waste, building large earth berms that have altered the natural flow of wadis and runoff channels. Managem itself fenced its concession zone with earthen barriers dug around its mines and facilities, expanding the site again in 2021.<\/p>\n

Following that expansion, massive protests erupted in October 2021\u2014shortly before the October 25 coup\u2014when some 3,000 artisanal miners gathered at Qabqaba\u2019s milling market, torching an administrative office and a tax tent, and attempting to storm Managem\u2019s headquarters in Abu Hamed. Police fired tear gas and live rounds into the air, injuring six people, one of whom was later transferred to Khartoum. The Interior Ministry then deployed joint forces\u2014police, army, Rapid Support Forces, and intelligence\u2014to restore order.<\/p>\n

As Manub and its subcontractors expanded, artisanal mining grew even faster. Studies indicate that artisanal mining areas along the Nile expanded from 50 hectares in 2016 to 125 hectares by 2024.
\nWithout regulation, thousands of miners use rudimentary tools and smuggled dynamite to dig pits, despite Sudan\u2019s Defense Industries System holding the only legal authority to supply explosives through its \u201cTarget\u201d company. Many of these materials are trafficked to artisanal miners illegally.<\/p>\n

A Barren Land<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the 2024 rainy season, environmental and health conditions in Qabqaba and Abu Hamed deteriorated sharply due to pollution from mercury and cyanide used in gold processing, compounded by poor healthcare services. Outbreaks of mining-related diseases and livestock losses were reported.
\nProtests and sit-ins erupted across nearby towns\u2014Fatuwar and Al-Joul (2020), Al-Abidiya and Al-Sulaimaniya (2022), and Hilla Younis (2025)\u2014condemning the use of toxic chemicals. Residents voiced anger over environmental destruction, while human rights reports highlighted links between some mining firms and Sudan\u2019s military institutions, intensifying public outrage.<\/p>\n

Locals told Atar that diseases such as blood disorders, fetal deformities, miscarriages, and kidney failure have surged\u2014symptoms they attribute to mercury contamination despite Sudan\u2019s ratification of the Minamata Convention. They also reported that flood paths have shifted in recent years, damaging infrastructure and property amid official silence.
\nEfforts by Atar to contact local and federal authorities for comment\u2014including the Abu Hamed locality executive, the Ministry of Minerals\u2019 contracts department, and corporate environment officers\u2014received no response.<\/p>\n

A previous Atar report after the 2024 floods noted that mining areas lie above the city\u2019s water distribution lines, and that excavation has altered natural drainage. Milling sites and new settlements now block traditional water routes, redirecting floods and forming new basins across the city.<\/p>\n

Mining in the Floodways<\/strong><\/p>\n

Geographer and GIS specialist Haider Fadlallah explained that gold in Qabqaba occurs both as alluvial deposits and within bedrock. Mining, he said, directly and indirectly affects flood channels through soil erosion, open pits, and tailings mounds that reduce water absorption and raise riverbeds\u2014making floods more likely and severe.<\/p>\n

Researcher Mohamed Salah Abdelrahman noted that the area between the Red Sea and the Nile has been a gold-mining zone since Pharaonic times. The region now hosts Sudan\u2019s highest gold output and labor concentration. He added that topographic change results from operations conducted directly in flood channels, accumulation of waste, and dense use of machinery\u2014alongside artisanal sieving pits (\u201cgarabil\u201d) spread across wadis since 2015. These pits exacerbate runoff and create floods in previously unaffected areas.<\/p>\n

Reports confirm that massive excavation and tailing heaps have physically diverted flood routes in Wadi Qabqaba. Gold has long been a pillar of Sudan\u2019s economy\u2014from the pre-revolution government\u2019s budgets to current wartime financing by rival armed groups.<\/p>\n

Environmental researcher and writer Sari Naqd emphasized that the uncontrolled boom in gold extraction over the past decade has generated vast amounts of chemically contaminated soil. Unfilled mining pits, he warned, will inevitably redirect floodwaters, while oversight bodies remain absent.<\/p>\n

Studies Required but Rarely Enforced<\/strong><\/p>\n

A source at the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company (SMRC) told Atar that each licensed company must conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before production and receive approval from the Higher Council for Environment. The studies identify waste disposal sites and require companies to rehabilitate land or establish green spaces after extraction.
\nHowever, the source admitted: \u201cNo company has ever implemented these obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n

SMRC has since created specialized firms to treat mercury-contaminated artisanal waste. But illegal use of dynamite persists. \u201cSudan has over five million artisanal miners,\u201d the source said. \u201cThey cannot be stopped under current economic conditions, and many now use smuggled explosives.\u201d<\/p>\n

The source added that before each rainy season, the company issues circulars urging firms to take preventive measures against floods and climate impacts. Yet without an effective emergency response center, Naqd warns, future disasters could be far worse than those already witnessed.<\/p>\n

Accusations Against Artisanal Mining<\/strong><\/p>\n

Officials insist that the 2024\u20132025 floods occurred far from company concessions, blaming artisanal mining for changing flood routes. GIS analyses, they claim, show that Manub\u2019s site sits on higher ground sloping north toward Egypt.
\nBut miners like Mohamed Al-Mahdi tell another story: artisanal diggers, using both small and heavy machinery, operate in and around corporate sites with little knowledge of geology or safety. \u201cWhen the floods come,\u201d he said, \u201cour deep pits fill with water\u2014and sometimes, a thousand miners can be trapped inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

The evidence and testimonies gathered in Qabqaba reveal that gold mining is not merely an economic pursuit\u2014it is a pressing environmental and social crisis. As rainfall intensifies under a changing climate, urgent policies are needed to protect local communities and ensure that Sudan\u2019s natural wealth does not become a source of devastation.<\/p>\n

Originally published by Atar<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sudan Events \u2013 Agencies In the autumn of 2024, the infrastructure of the city of Abu Hamed, in Sudan\u2019s River Nile State, was severely damaged by heavy rainfall and flash floods. This occurred despite warnings from the Sudanese Meteorological Authority\u2019s Early Warning Unit, which had classified the danger level as \u201cextreme.\u201d Local organizations reported the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":55422,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55421"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55423,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55421\/revisions\/55423"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}