Close to 4,500Kg of gold was shipped abroad over the first half of the fiscal year, generating 272 million dollars. The figure is slightly less than gold export revenues from the same period last year. A little under three tonnes of the exports was sourced from artisanal miners. During a half-year performance report to parliament, Minister of Mines Takele Uma told MPs the armed conflict in the country's north and security concerns in Benishangul-Gumuz and Oromia regional states (home to large gold deposits) have had a significant impact on the mining sector. A total of 283 million dollars was generated from the export of minerals over the six-month period.