On the Trail of Illicit Gold Proceeds: Strengthening the Fight Against Illegal Mining Finances: Colombia’s Case.
By The The Organization of American States, Department against Transnational Organized Crime
The illegal gold trade in Colombia is a widespread and significant threat that has seen considerable growth in recent years. Illegal mining activity produces substantial quantities of gold in the country, by some estimates representing over 70% of national production and accounting for the majority of gold exports. The illegal extraction of gold exacerbates numerous challenges Colombia faces, such as insecurity, environmental degradation, and corruption, while also providing opportunities for drug trafficking organizations and illegal armed groups to obtain significant revenue in some regions. Indeed, in areas where there is extensive mineral exploitation these transnational criminal organizations are often deeply involved in Colombia’s illegal trade in gold, leveraging extensive criminal expertise, ample financing capacities, and armed violence in order to develop illicit gold networks. The spread of illegal mining in Colombia is facilitated by high levels of economic and commercial informality, rural poverty, corruption, limited governmental presence and resources in remote mining areas, and porous international borders that are vulnerable to smuggling, among other factors. Colombia’s government is taking numerous steps to combat the sale and export of illegal gold, including through regulation and oversight of gold supply chains, formalization programs targeting small-scale miners, support for subsistence mining, and on-the-ground operations to disrupt illegal mining activity. Nevertheless, illegal trade in gold continues to thrive as illicit actors excel in finding gaps and opportunities to exploit.
Washington, DC: The Organization of American States, Department against Transnational Organized Crime, 2022. 66p.