Juba — Are wars fought to gain control over resources, or is control over resources used to finance fighting? This is a question that arises when observing the various conflicts in Africa, in which the opposing parties – regular armies, paramilitary groups, and private military companies – compete for territories rich in natural resources by using smuggling activities to illegally export them. The truth probably lies somewhere in between: people fight for political reasons, and the resources of the territory serve to finance the rivals, but it is also true that there are networks of profiteers whose primary motivation is economic gain.
The most striking case is the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where around 100 armed groups are active, operating for a mixture of political, ethnic, and economic reasons. But of these 100 groups, including regular army units, almost none are involved in the plundering of these areas’ natural resources. Minerals like coltan and gold (also traded in other war-torn areas like Sudan and Mali) are frequently mentioned, but precious woods are rarely mentioned.
In the case of South Sudan, teak, highly prized wood used for high-quality furniture, luxury yachts, boats, and construction, is the country’s second most important export after petroleum and is subject to thriving smuggling by the various warring parties. Smuggling has devastating effects on the country’s budget. According to the World Bank, South Sudan could earn more than $150 million from exporting this valuable wood when it actually receives just $2 million.
The smuggling is carried out by armed groups, including the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) and the opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Army, the two main factions that emerged from the army, which has been divided by fighting since 2013. Some SSPDF soldiers participate in logging, while others supervise and protect the loggers. Some of them work for companies affiliated with the army.
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The timber is then smuggled from South Sudan into northern Uganda with the involvement of the armed groups and through the corruption of administrative and border officials.
In Uganda, customs officials working with the smugglers issue fake certificates of origin to facilitate the transport of timber disguised as Ugandan products to the port of Mombasa in Kenya.
The large-scale illegal teak trade causes not only fiscal and economic damage but also environmental destruction, soil erosion, and the loss of natural resources. The plantations in the south of the country, near the borders with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, have already been decimated by illegal logging.