Dubai: The Middle East office of the World Gold Council (WGC), a non-profit organisation of the world's leading gold producers, has been operating for months without a managing director, Gulf News has learned.

Sources within the council and the jewellery industry in Dubai confirmed on Sunday that Moaz Barakat, WGC head for the Middle East, Turkey and Pakistan, left the office in August for "personal reasons".

The WGC, which is represented by a network of offices around the world, has yet to fill the vacuum, but officials say Barakat's departure has not affected their operations in the region.

"The managing director's position has not been filled yet. However, things are running the way they were. Nothing has changed.

"The management in London is supervising everything. We also have a project manager and a country manager running things," a source from the council told Gulf News.

Barakat had been the council's regional chief for about a decade and his quiet departure has raised scepticism among industry officials.

The council, however, remains mum about the reasons for the executive's leaving and has yet to issue an official statement.