Sesame and gum Arabic from Sudan and Chad: China's zero tariffs and the checks buyers now need

Sesame seeds and gum Arabic are two of the most important exports of Sudan and Chad, and China is the largest buyer of African sesame. In 2026 two things have changed the trade: China has opened its market to African goods duty-free, and a UN report has set out how the war in Sudan has entered the gum Arabic supply chain. This note explains both and lists the checks we think every buyer should make. Figures are as reported up to 26 September 2026.

China's zero tariffs for Africa

From 1 May 2026 China applies zero tariffs to 100% of tariff lines on imports from 53 African countries, every African state with which it has diplomatic relations except Eswatini. For the 20 countries that are not least developed countries, such as Egypt, Kenya and Nigeria, the zero rate is a two-year preference while a longer-term agreement is negotiated; before, they faced tariffs of 8% to 30%.

For Sudan and Chad the change is smaller than the headlines suggest. Both are least developed countries, and the 33 African least developed countries have had zero tariffs on all tariff lines since 1 December 2024. What changes for them is competition: sesame, groundnuts and other products from larger non-LDC exporters such as Nigeria now enter China on the same terms.

Sesame: China depends on Africa

China is the world's largest importer of sesame and buys more than 80% of its imported sesame seed from Africa. Six countries, Niger, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Mozambique and Ethiopia, supply 95% of African sesame exports to China.

Analysts such as Thierry Pairault, quoted by Ambassador David Shinn, argue that the zero-tariff benefit is captured mainly by importers and processors in China rather than by African farmers. For buyers, the practical point is that African sesame origins compete closely with each other on price, oil content, purity and colour, and that Chinese import requirements apply to all of them equally.

Gum Arabic: a war-time trade

Gum Arabic is the dried sap of acacia trees, used as a stabiliser and emulsifier in soft drinks, confectionery, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Before the war that began in April 2023, Sudan supplied roughly 70% to 80% of the world's crude gum Arabic exports, worth up to 183 million US dollars a year, according to UN News. Exports in stable years were 100,000 to 150,000 tonnes. In the 2023/24 season they fell to about 48,000 tonnes, roughly 40% of pre-war levels.

Production areas in Kordofan and Darfur have been hit hard. In February 2026 traders in El Obeid, the main gum Arabic market, described large stocks held in production areas that could not be moved safely because of insecurity and checkpoints. Chad is the other main source of gum Arabic, and part of Sudan's crop now leaves through neighbouring countries.

What the UN report found

On 15 July 2026 the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published a briefing paper on gum Arabic from Sudan. Its main findings:

• Both the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces, and actors linked to them, profit from the trade through looting, extortion and informal taxation at checkpoints.
• Supplies from army-held areas still move through Port Sudan, while large quantities from areas held by the Rapid Support Forces are smuggled through neighbouring countries and re-exported.
• Routes identified include Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Kenya (Mombasa), Cameroon (Douala), Libya and Egypt, with goods relabelled at transit points.
• Ordinary commercial assurances and existing verification measures "appear largely insufficient" in this environment.

OHCHR asks companies that source from Sudan to carry out heightened, conflict-sensitive human rights due diligence, including closer scrutiny of routes, intermediaries, documentation and possible relabelling.

Checks we think every buyer should make

Whether you buy sesame or gum Arabic from Sudan, Chad or a neighbouring country, these are the checks we recommend:

• Know the collection area. Ask where the product was grown or tapped, not only where it was exported from. A certificate of origin from a transit country is not enough on its own.
• Know the route. Ask how the goods reached the export port, and whether that route is consistent with the stated origin.
• Know the exporter. Check the exporter's registration, ownership and track record, and screen them against sanctions lists.
• Match the documents. Certificates of origin, phytosanitary certificates, inspection reports and packing lists should all describe the same lots, with consistent bag markings.
• Inspect independently. Have an independent inspection company sample the cargo at loading for purity, moisture, oil content (sesame) or grade (gum Arabic, such as hashab or talha), and seal the containers.
• Plan for the route. Cargo from Port Sudan uses the Red Sea. Our note on shipping in 2026 covers the current state of Red Sea routes.

They sit alongside the anti-money-laundering checks we carry out on every transaction and the independent inspection we use on agricultural shipments.

What to watch

China's import data by origin, the security of routes in Kordofan and Darfur, any follow-up by governments to the OHCHR report, and conditions at Port Sudan and in the Red Sea.

See our pages for sesame seeds and gum Arabic, or send us your requirement.