AfroVerdict

Blood on Our Phones: DRC's Lawsuit Against Apple and Illegal Mining in DRC

Illegal mining in the DRC once again raises its ugly head from the shadows as we remember the country's lawsuit against Apple for sourcing illegally and unethically mined minerals. AfroVerdict host joins an author of a paper about the use of child labour in coltan extraction to discuss the solutions for illegal mining practices.
Sputnik
The lack of security in eastern DRC is contributing to the thriving smuggling and illegal mining practices, according to Dr. Oluwole Ojewale, Regional Coordinator for Central Africa at the Institute for Security Studies in Dakar, Senegal.

"You also have external stakeholders that are now coming from these countries to take advantage of that, engaging directly in illicit mining. They don't comply with certification mechanisms," the expert explains.

The aftermath of such practices lead to negative effects observable in children, health problems, contaminated water and a degraded environment.
One of the solutions, Dr. Ojewale believes, is for companies from the global north to cooperate with "relevant organs of government, the civil society, the media and environmental activists".
To hear what else the expert had to say, check out the entire episode of the AfroVerdict podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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