São Paulo – Sudan is looking to export gum Arabic to Brazil, and to have Brazilians join processing of the product. Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, is hosting the World Gum Arabic Conference next May, and Sudan’s ambassador to Brazil, Abdelmoniem Ahmed Alamin (pictured above), is planning on having Brazilians join in. The Arab country intends to start processing the product instead of simply shipping it raw as it does presently.
Alamin visited the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce last week. He invited the organization to attend the conference, while speaking with International Relations vice president Osmar Chohfi and CEO Tamer Mansour. The goal is for Brazilians to see how gum is made in Sudan, and to look into importing and taking part in processing.
The event in Khartoum is being held by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and 13 African gum-producing countries will participate. “Sudan is the leading gum Arabic producer in the world,” Alamin said in an interview with ANBA. The gum is used in making 86 types of products, including pharmaceuticals, food products and cosmetics, according to Alamin.
The ambassador explains that his country accounts for about 75% of gum Arabic made worldwide but sells the product unprocessed, as a raw material. Therefore, Sudan is missing out on the chance to add value to gum Arabic and increase its revenues from it. The Arab country needs partnerships and investments to go into manufacturing. “The doors are open,” said Alamin.
After the conference, producing countries will join forces in an organization to be based in Khartoum, according to the ambassador. The goal will be to encourage higher value-added production. The conference is also expected to be attended by other UN organizations, as well as delegates from countries which import gum. The United States are the leading importer of Sudanese gum and kept buying even while an embargo was in place, according to Alamin.
The ambassador believes Brazil imports processed gum from Europe. According to numbers from the Brazilian Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services compiled by the Arab Chamber, Brazil imported only USD 4 million worth of goods from Sudan in January and February, of which USD 430,000 were gums, resins and other plant juices and extracts.
The Sudanese diplomat also told ANBA about other opportunities available to Brazilian entrepreneurs in his country. One would be gold exploration, which is currently very rudimentar, with a dearth of companies investing in the sector, according to Alamin. The Arab country also buys agricultural machinery from Brazil – a market with a very strong potential in Sudan. The ambassador claims only 20% of farmable lands in the country are currently in use.
Brazil is already involved in some instances of Sudan’s economy. Its Grupo Pinesso is active in farming with a local partner, and companies Dedini and Interunion have contributed technology to Sudan’s ethanol and sugar company Kenana. Brazil sustains a number of agreements with Sudan, in fields including technical cooperation and political understanding. Alamin says the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) and the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) support his country in improving its cotton and sugar production.
Alamin was sworn in as ambassador of Sudan to Brazil in August 2018. He also represents Sudan in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Chile and Peru. According to him, Sudan-Brazil diplomatic ties date back to the 1970s but got a boost from the opening of mutual embassies in 2004. “These ties are developing better and better. We have many success stories, especially in agricultural deals,” he said.
During his visit to the Arab Chamber, Alamin and C-level executives discussed having a Brazil-Sudan economic forum. Trade between the two countries hit USD 565,200 million in January and February of this year, with Brazil running a USD 557 million surplus. Brazil shipped mostly sugar, pastry products, machinery, meats and vehicles to Sudan, which sold mostly seeds and fruits to Brazil.
Sudan’s ambassador attended on Thursday (28) the opening of photo exhibit Taswir, contemporary Arab photography at Instituto Tomie Ohtake in São Paulo. The showing will continue until April 28, featuring 78 photos by artists from 14 Arab and European countries, and is being held to mark Arab Community Day in Brazil and the Arab League’s 74th anniversary.
For more on the World Gum Arabic Conference please contact the Embassy of Sudan in Brasília – +55 61 3248 4834/sudaninbrasilia@gmail.com.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
