As the first traceability and due diligence system for artisanal gold in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Just Gold project has demonstrated great potential. Yet barriers persist that prevent support to the most marginalized of artisanal gold mining communities in the country.
It is IMPACT’s hope that critical evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the Just Gold project will help ensure people in conflict-affected and high-risk areas are not left behind by the tide of global attention on the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector.
An important step forward in supporting legal trade in conflict and high-risk areas, responsible sourcing from artisanal mining communities also has unintended consequences. It can directly favour those in more advantageous positions in the supply chain while the least powerful—like women and men miners themselves—see no benefit. As a result, communities on the whole may not experience security, development, and equality. Furthermore, “cleaning” a supply chain, particularly if severely limiting the number of actors (for example, in a closed pipe approach), may simply serve to displace problems to other locations or to another commodity.
Companies could be ensuring supply chains are conflict-free, benefiting local communities, and contributing to equitable peace and development. However, responsible sourcing has failed to move beyond an avoidance-type or de-risking approach to supply chain management, wherein companies simply avoid sourcing from certain regions.
Since IMPACT first began developing a traceability and due diligence system for gold in
DRC in 2012, we have adapted our approach many times. The project picked up a name along the way in 2015, and the Just Gold project announced the first successful chain of custody from mine site to export in June 2017. A month later, the first conflict-free, traceable, and legal artisanal gold from DRC hit the market in Canada.
When the Just Gold project was first proposed in December 2012, IMPACT sought
to test if and how artisanal gold could be traced from mine site in DRC to export. In
the first phase, operating in Mangi in Banalia Territory, IMPACT achieved supply chain
traceability up to the trader level. In the second phase, in Mambasa Territory, we
successfully introduced traceability from mine site to exporter, then beyond to the international market.
When it is applied alongside the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply
Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas (OECD Due Diligence
Guidance), we believe that a robust and verifiable chain of custody applying the
International Conference on the Great Lakes Region’s (ICGLR) Regional Certification
Mechanism can provide sufficient evidence of gold that is responsible and untainted by
human rights violations or corruption.
Eight years in, IMPACT believes that transparency about lessons learned will help
answer the question of whether there is a viable future for conflict-free, traceable, and
legal artisanal gold from DRC and what it may look like.
Project
Just Gold – Democratic Republic of Congo
Bringing Responsible and Conflict-Free Gold from Artisanal Mines to International Markets
Read More for Just Gold – Democratic Republic of Congo
