The complexiTy of resource governance in a conTexT of sTaTe ... - Ipis

8 International Alert
Introduction
This report, commissioned by the Directorate General for Development of the European
Commission (EC), aims to fill an information gap about mining in the so-called “eastern
hinterland” of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It identifies the principal mining
sites in the provinces of Maniema, North Katanga and Orientale, and analyses the trade networks
from these areas to the regional hubs of Bunia (in Ituri) Bukavu (in South Kivu), Goma and
Butembo (in the province of North Kivu).
After many reports of insecurity and human rights violations related to mining activity in North
Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri in recent years, the mining sector in these areas has been the subject
of several publications. In these texts, the conflict-affected Kivu provinces are usually depicted
as a region beyond state control where shadow economies thrive – an analysis to which DRC
President Joseph Kabila appeared to subscribe when he ordered the suspension of all mining
activities in North Kivu, South Kivu and Maniema on 11th September 2010. However, whether
these shadow economies extend into other important mining areas bordering the Kivu provinces
remains unclear, as there is little existing documentation on the main networks in the hinterland.
This study supplements another EC-commissioned report, ‘The role of the exploitation of natural
resources in fuelling and prolonging crises in the eastern DRC’, published in January 2010. That
provides an analytic desk review of the recent literature; synthesises existing information on
mining sites and commercial routes in the Kivu provinces and Ituri; assesses the political and
economic factors; evaluates the measures prioritised by the international community for short
and medium-term action; and formulates recommendations for further lines of enquiry.
After the publication of the current report, a third will follow in early 2011 under the title: ‘The
complexity of resource governance in a context of state fragility: the case of eastern DRC’. It will
provide insight into the complex mineral-trading chains that run through Bunia, Butembo, Goma
and Bukavu to neighbouring countries in 12 detailed case studies. That report focuses on both the
shadow economy and official circuits.
Structure and summary
This second report discusses the mining sector in three areas bordering on the Kivus. The first
chapter examines activity in northern Katanga province; the second, mining on the east bank of
the Congo River in Maniema; and the third, the mining sector in the territories of Bafwasende and
Mambasa in Province Orientale.
Each chapter follows the same structure. The mineral resources of the area are discussed in a
first paragraph, providing some perspective on the production of each mineral and historical
background. The most important mines are presented in a second paragraph, as an entry point to
the maps of mining sites that accompany each chapter (see below). The third section deals with
the mining sector, describing the traders, transport routes and mining companies. The fourth
focuses on human rights violations by and profiting by armed groups and the national army, the
Forces Armées de la Republique Démocratique du Congo (FARDC).
In Nothern Katanga, two measures at the provincial level have had an important impact on the
minerals trade. As a consequence, one trading house virtually monopolises the trade in cassiterite
and coltan. Until September 2009, the mineral trading system was inextricably linked to that of