It is not unusual for countries to store their gold reserves in another country. This practice started during World War 2 after a lot of gold was moved to avoid theft. And, after the war, some countries whose governments felt that they didn’t have a secure storage facility for their gold decided to store the gold in a network of different banks in countries that had secure storage facilities. One of the most prominent countries with a secure gold storage facility is the United States, which currently has the largest gold reserve in the world, with 90 percent of its gold belonging to other countries. This means that countries trust that their gold reserve is in safe hands with the United States. However, it seems that this trust has begun to erode as countries from Africa and the Middle East have decided to repatriate their gold reserves from the United States. What this simply means is that African and Middle Eastern countries have decided to withdraw their gold reserves which were stored in the United States, back to their countries.

Interestingly, the African countries that have decided to repatriate their gold from the US are those that are pro-US, meaning they have a very good relationship with the United States. They include Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, and Senegal. South Africa and Egypt as well as Saudi Arabia in the Middle East have also expressed their decision to repatriate their gold from the United States. The question now is why? Why did these countries decide to repatriate their gold at the time? Well, for Nigeria, the decision to repatriate its gold reserves from the United States, is simply a proactive stance in safeguarding its wealth. And, according to the Nigerian media State Journal, this decision is in response to mounting concerns about the downturn of the US economy. The publication also highlights the fact that the decision reflects Nigeria’s determination to assert its sovereignty and pursue independence in the global arena. Thus by taking control of its gold reserves, Nigeria can demonstrate its capability to manage its affairs without external interference.

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