Archives: Publications

This report is the result of a large-scale field study on taxation in the artisanal mining sector in the eastern Congolese provinces of Ituri and South Kivu. The main finding is that current regulations and practices in the field not only cause mineral smuggling, which leaves some of the sector’s fiscal potential untapped at the provincial and national levels, but also constitute a source of insec

This report offers a new framework for looking at the eastern Congo conflict, one within which new evolutions of the past twenty years find a place. Indeed, violent conflict in eastern Congo has changed dramatically in all its aspects over the past two decades. Yet too often policymakers and observers appear to assume that we are dealing with a proxy war orchestrated from the DRC’s eastern neighbo

In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector plays an important role in the local economy. While large-scale armed conflict over DRC’s mineral wealth has decreased significantly over the past twenty years, armed actors continuously interfere in the mining sector, and conflicts over resources at the local level are still common. Based on new minin

‘Matokeo’ (meaning ‘impact’ in Swahili) is a data-driven platform operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with the ability to reach last mile artisanal miners, enabling them to ping the latest international price of gold. Conceptualized by Ulula and the International Peace Information Service (IPIS), the project won a Conservation X grant in October 2020 for its ability to remotely col

Over  the  years,  IPIS  has  systematically  collected  mine  site  and  trade  hub  level  data  on  artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in eastern DRC. This data collection has enabled IPIS to generate a sizable database of more than 3,000 ASM sites that draws  both  on  sites  visited  by  IPIS  and  data  from  third  party  sources  including  the  Congolese  mining  cadastre and the Mini

IPIS has created large format maps of known past and present ASM sites in eastern DRC. These A0 maps cover the provinces of Haut Uele, Maniema, Ituri and North and South Kivu. Each map details the type of minerals, the qualification status by official authorities, the mining titles and provide with an overview of armed presence in and around the mines as reported during field visits conducted by I

During 2021, IPIS supported members of the Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition (KP CSC) in a series of grassroots studies on the human rights, socio-economic and environmental impact of diamond mining in eight African countries. IPIS provided online trainings on field survey methodology as well as editorial support to ten civil society organisations who carried out independent field res

A controlled impact study will be conducted by IPIS to evaluate the net effects of Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCT) on the socio-economic well-being of recipients. A controlled study approach allows potential effects of the intervention to be assessed by monitoring specific indicators in the group of people receiving cash transfers (inhabitants of the UCT village), in comparison with a comparabl

Regional Cooperation to Enhance the Implementation of the Kimberley Process in Central Africa In December 2021, the Working Group on Artisanal and Alluvial Production (WGAAP) of the Kimberley Process (KP) and the Cameroonian government hosted the second Central African regional cooperation workshop in Yaoundé to build understanding, share experiences and formulate recommendations on the fight agai

This briefing paper looks at the relationship between mineral fiscal regimes and the smuggling of minerals in the Great Lakes Region, both within and between countries. It presents an overview and comparative analysis of the fiscal regimes applicable to the artisanal and small-scale (ASM) production of tin, tungsten, tantalum and gold (3TGs) in Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the DRC, looking at the p

In this Voix du Congo publication, the Congolese civil society organisation Action for Peace and Development (APDE) analyses mining-related incidents reported via the “Kufatilia” platform between July 2020 and June 2021 in the mining region of Misisi.

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 uncertain terms, a series of UN and NGO reports linking Antwerp to bloody civi

In April 2020, when the Coronavirus spread around the world, IPIS started monitoring the impact of the pandemic on the production and trade of the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). IPIS published a report in October 2020 that discussed the results of several rounds of consultations with ASM stakeholders at nearly 90 Tin, Tantalum, Tung

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). D

Since November 2018, International Peace Information Service (IPIS) has been implementing the “Kufatilia” project which aims at strengthening transparency in the monitoring of incidents related to artisanal mining.

To assess the socio-economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector in Western Central African Republic (CAR), IPIS conducted a series of phone surveys with key informants located on 260 gold and diamond mining sites. The Covid-19 pandemic has been particularly harsh on the artisanal mining sector in Western CAR, emphasizing existing trends since the 2

In the “Voix du Congo” series, Pole Institute presents a study on incidents in artisanal supply chains in the Rubaya mining area, Masisi territory in North Kivu province (DRC). This study focuses on incidents reported between September and June 2020 via the “Kufatilia” platform in the Rubaya Mining Zone, Masisi Territory, North Kivu Province.

KP Civil Society member organisations between May and August 2020 carried out research projects in their home countries on one of three areas of focus, namely benefits of diamond mining to local communities (CECIDE/AMINES, GAERN, NMJD, CNRG, Green Advocates, CENADEP), violence caused by diamond mining (ZELA, RELUFA) and land rights (MCDF). All participants in these national research projects faced

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.

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.