adminKIGALI — Industries worldwide are taking a closer look at their supply chains for minerals exported from Africa’s Great Lakes region. They are worried they could be penalized for buying conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo that are labelled as other countries’ production. To counter those fears and build confidence among importers, Rwanda has started issuing regionally approved certificates for exports from its own mines.
A large delegation of mining experts, journalists and others visited the Rutongo tin mine in central Rwanda this month and were greeted with a song of welcome from miners and other employees.
The message of the song is that industrial mining has improved people’s lives in this area and that the products exported from here are not conflict minerals.
Rutongo is the first mine in Rwanda where mineral exports have been given “conflict-free” certificates by the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, a body representing 11 countries including Rwanda and the DRC.
It is one of Rwanda’s largest tin mines with nearly 42 kilometers of tunnels.
Companies like Rutongo Mines Ltd do not want to fall afoul of US legislation, part of the Dodd-Frank Act, that could penalize buyers of minerals from this region unless the products can be shown to be conflict-free.
Martin Kahanovitz, chief executive officer of Rutongo Mines Ltd, says he is taking the risks seriously.
“I mean we are putting in millions and millions of dollars. Are we going to start [trafficking] conflict minerals and contaminated minerals? There’s no chance. We’ll lose everything, and on top of that, as far as the people are concerned, you know the people have got everything to lose and they understand that,” says Kahanovitz.
To guard against conflict minerals being smuggled into the supply chain from the mine, Rutongo Mines works with a body called ITSCI, an organization set up by the tin industry, which was asked by Rwanda’s government to install a tagging system at all of the country’s mines.
Kahanovitz explains that the system means each tag can be traced to a miner. — allafrica.com
Online Reporter