Musings From Abroad

UN testimony claims Congo rebels earning $300,000 per month in seized mines

Published

3 months ago

October 1, 2024

The United Nations Security Council heard testimony on Monday indicating that rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo have established a firm hold over the Rubaya coltan-mining region and are imposing a production tax projected to bring in $300,000 per month.

After fierce fighting in April, the M23 movement—a Tutsi-led group allegedly supported by Rwanda—took control of the region, which produces minerals needed in computers and smartphones.

The head of the United Nations mission in Congo, Bintou Keita, informed the Security Council that more than 15% of the world’s supply of tantalum comes from trading in minerals from the Rubaya region.

The United States and the European Union regard tantalum as an essential material, with Congo being the world’s biggest producer.

“This generates an estimated $300,000 in revenue per month to the armed group,” Keita said. “This is deeply concerning and needs to be stopped.”

“The criminal laundering of the DRC’s natural resources smuggled out of the country is strengthening armed groups, sustaining the exploitation of civilian populations, some of them reduced to de-facto slavery, and undermining peace-making efforts,” Keita added.

Most of Congo’s mineral riches are found in its east, an area beset by resource and territory disputes between multiple armed groups. Ever since the M23 insurrection reappeared in March 2022, things have gotten worse.

Since the conflict resumed, many have died and over a million people have been displaced.

Manufacturers are being closely watched to make sure that metals from conflict areas, like the eastern Congo, are not utilised in items like laptops and batteries for electric vehicles.

According to Keita, armed groups have become more powerful financially and militarily as a result of their transformation into militarised businesspeople in response to the boom in mining earnings.

“Unless international sanctions are imposed on those benefiting from this criminal trade, peace will remain elusive, and civilians will continue to suffer,” Keita said.

Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

5 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

1 day ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.