Checkpoint economy: the political economy of checkpoints in South Sudan, ten years after independence
Ten years after independence, the world’s youngest country is home to an entrenched political economy of conflict premised on checkpoint taxation. Humanitarian aid is not exempt, reveals a major new mapping report by DIIS and IPIS. When South Sudan became independent ten years ago, oil revenues were supposed to fuel the economy of the world’s […]
Advocating for an improved enabling environment for the production, trade and export of OECD Due Diligence Guidance (DDG)-conformant minerals from eastern DRC
As part of the Madini project, a review of the current situation, trends and barriers in the production, trade and export of tin, tantalum, tungsten (3T) and gold from eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was conducted by Levin Sources, with the aim to recommend concrete actions that can improve OECD-conformant sourcing of these minerals […]
The management of lethal materiel in conflict settings: existing challenges and opportunities for the European Peace Facility
This paper, which is a collaboration between Eric G. Berman (Director of the Safeguarding Security Sector Stockpiles (S⁴) Initiative) and IPIS, shows that levels of loss of uniformed personnel serving in peace operations in the Lake Chad Basin region under the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), as well as the seizure of lethal materiel from […]
Review paper – The EU Conflict Minerals Regulation: Implementation at the EU Member State level
A coalition of European NGOs working on responsible mineral sourcing, including IPIS, published a review paper discussing the state of implementation of the European Conflict Minerals Regulation across European Union Member States. The report highlights the shortcomings of the Regulation and the general lack of transparency that hinders effective and efficient monitoring of companies. The NGO […]
Belgium’s fight against conflict diamonds: an assessment of the country’s diamond sector controls from a global perspective
In its new report, IPIS assesses Belgium’s fight against conflict diamonds. The report focusses on the Belgian city of Antwerp, which has played a central role in the global diamond trade for centuries. Yet as the world’s diamond hub, Antwerp not only attracted the best but also the worst of this diverse industry. In no […]
Evaluating Due Diligence Programs for Conflict Minerals
The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act requires that US-listed companies sourcing so-called “conflict minerals” from Africa’s Great Lakes region conduct due diligence. Since January 2021, the EU imposes its 3TG importers to conduct due diligence in line with the OECD Guidelines (for a comparison between the two regulations, see IPIS Insight: Regulating Responsible Sourcing of 3TG Minerals). Due diligence programs (DDP), […]
National Baseline Assessment – Business and Human Rights in Belgium
IPIS contributed to the Belgian National Baseline Assessment (NBA). The report covers the findings and recommendations of the NBA. The NBA charts the progress made by Belgian authorities and companies since the launch of Belgium’s first National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, in June 2017. The research was commissioned by the Belgian Federal Institute for […]
Report on the Third Multi-Stakeholder Conference on Business and Human Rights in Tanzania
This report presents a summary of the outcomes of the Third Multi-stakeholder Conference on Business and Human Rights in Tanzania which was held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on the 17th of February 2021, at Holliday Inn Hotel. The conference was part of the project “Improving, monitoring, research and dialogue on business and human rights in Tanzania”, which […]
Promoting peaceful and seasonal migration in Northern Central African Republic
“You can negotiate with an armed group, not with the drought” The borderlands of the Central African Republic (CAR) are home to one of the largest seasonal livestock migrations (transhumance) in the world. Decades of unrest and crisis, however, have brutally disrupted most aspects of herding—the routes taken, the people involved, governance mechanisms, as well […]
The mining sector in Tanzania, Delve Country Profile
In partnership with Delve, IPIS produced a profile of the ASM sector in Tanzania. The Country Profile compiles information on the mining governance framework, provides data on key ASM minerals and analyses the contribution of artisanal mining to the SDGs.
The mining sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Delve Country Profile
In partnership with Delve, IPIS produced a profile of the ASM sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Country Profile compiles information on the mining governance framework, provides data on key ASM minerals and analyses the contribution of artisanal mining to the SDGs.
L’exploitation minière artisanale à Beni-Mbau : Etat des lieux et cartographie des sites miniers
In the framework of the stabilisation project “Ensemble pour Beni”, IOM, IPIS, ASSODIP and ASADHO carried out a baseline assessment of the artisanal mining sector in the Beni territory. This report provides an overview of the sector and analyses opportunities to promote responsible mineral supply chains.
The impact of Covid-19 on the artisanal mining sector in eastern DRC
As Covid-19 spreads around the world, artisanal mining communities experience once more how much their livelihoods depend on the global economy. Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, IPIS has closely monitored its impact on 3T, gold and diamond mining and trade in the DRC.
Transparency and Formalization of Gold Supply Chains in Eastern DR Congo
Advancing incident reporting and community participation in responsible sourcing From January 2018 till December 2019, IPIS and its partner CEGEMI (Catholic University of Bukavu) carried out a capacity enhancement project in the gold mining sector in Eastern Congo, financed by the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals (EPRM). The project was composed of two complementary parts: […]
How much does a miner earn? Assessment of miner’s revenue; basic needs study in the DRC
How much does a miner earn in Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)? Can a miner’s family cover its basic needs? In a new report, IPIS and Levin Sources compare the income of miners and their basic needs expenditures, to provide a better and nuanced understanding of why ASM communities seem to remain extremely poor […]
Mapping artisanal mining sites in the Western Central African Republic (2019)
This report presents an analysis of the artisanal mining sector in western Central African Republic (CAR) and outlines some of the challenges surrounding gold and diamond mining, trade and export. From April to July 2019, the International Peace Information Service (IPIS), in partnership with national authorities, carried out a mapping of artisanal mining sites in […]
Report on the Second Multi-stakeholder Conference on Business and Human Rights in Tanzania
This report presents a summary of the outcomes of the Second Multi-stakeholder Conference on Business and Human Rights in Tanzania which was held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on the 18th of March 2020, at Seascape Hotel. The conference was part of the project “Improving, monitoring, research and dialogue on business and human rights in Tanzania”, which aims […]
Ground-Based Incident Reporting in eastern DRC – Progress Report 3
In January 2018, the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals (EPRM) granted IPIS funds to implement an independent, transparent and participatory platform for incident reporting and community empowerment in responsible sourcing in the eastern DRC gold sector. This platform will have to contribute in improving transparency around follow-up and resolution of incidents in cooperation with relevant […]
Piloting a digital stakeholder engagement platform for Tanzania’s mining sector: Incident tracking & mobile surveys
As part of a project on mining and human rights, IPIS undertook a large-scale mobile data collection exercise on operational, socio-economic and human rights aspects of artisanal and industrial mining in northwest Tanzania. Building on this baseline data gathered in the first phase of this project on the nature, scope and impact of artisanal and […]
Dissecting the social license to operate: Local community perceptions of industrial mining in northwest Tanzania
Discussions on industrial mining often revolve around the sector’s contribution to domestic revenue generation. The local impact on the rural communities wherein most of these companies operate receives much less attention. To bring the voices of these communities to the centre of the debate, IPIS conducted surveys on community perspectives in 32 villages nearby six […]