The rising spotlight on coltan: Understanding its strategic importance and role in the Eastern Congo conflict
In the past two decades, there has probably been no time when coltan has been discussed as much as it is today. Initially brought to global attention in the early 2000s, coltan was wrongly portrayed as the main cause of the conflict in Eastern Congo and was subsequently labelled as a “conflict mineral.” However, following […]
Roadblocks in Masisi and Walikale: Predation on movement in turbulent times
While minerals have centered in research on conflict financing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, armed actors often rely on alternative sources of revenue to finance their struggles. Among these are the operation of roadblocks. In this report, produced together with ASSODIP and the Danish Institute for International Studies, IPIS studies the linkage between […]
Mining and conflict in the eastern DRC: An interactive story map
Conflict-financing, armed interference, and sources of insecurity beyond the ‘conflict minerals’ paradigm In this story map, IPIS presents its findings on the linkage between mining and conflict-financing in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Based on a survey conducted between 2021-2023 of 829 active mining sites (representing over 132,320 artisanal miners), IPIS’ research […]
Analysis of the interactive map of artisanal mining areas in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (2023 update)
Since 2009, IPIS has mapped and collected data at more than 2,800 Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) sites in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In this report, IPIS provides its 2023 update of the state of ASM in the eastern DRC, based on data from over 829 ASM sites in the eastern […]
