How Village Savings & Loans Groups Saved $7,000 in Only Four Months
By David Mbulula Garamba National Park lies in the Haut-Uélé province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), along the border with South Sudan. Most of the region is very isolated, but African Parks (which manages Garamba) has improved security greatly over the past few years, both for the wildlife within the park and…
Read MoreUSAID and Equity Bank partner to unlock $5M in lending to artisanal and small-scale mining operators in eastern DRC
Kinshasa, DRC – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Equity BCDC have partnered to unlock financial services and products to artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operators in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) via USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project. As one of the largest banks in the DRC, Equity BCDC…
Read MoreUSAID and Equity Bank partner to unlock $5M in lending to artisanal and small-scale mining operators in eastern DRC
Kinshasa, DRC – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Equity BCDC have partnered to unlock financial services and products to artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operators in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) via USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project. As one of the largest banks in the DRC, Equity BCDC…
Read MoreUSAID’S Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project Launches Refiners Community of Practice to Help Set Up Responsible Gold Supply Chain from Eastern DRC
A pre-competitive and collaborative group of refiners familiar with the challenges of sourcing artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) gold from the DRC came together in late 2020 under the umbrella of USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project’s Refiners Community of Practice (CoP), following in-depth market analysis into the reasons why they tend to refrain from…
Read MoreUSAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project Launches Refiners Community of Practice to Help Set Up Responsible Gold Supply Chain from Eastern DRC
By Rachel Brass – Director, Market Linkages and Investment, USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project Gold refiners Heimerle + Meule, IGR, Italpreziosi, L’Orfebre, MKS PAMP, PX Precinox and Rand Refinery have joined a pre-competitive and collaborative group of refiners interested in learning and sharing the realities of sourcing artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) gold from…
Read MoreBuilding Demand for Responsibly-Sourced Gold from Eastern Congo
Many communities in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) rely on artisanal and small-scale mining as a primary livelihood. While a significant drive of DRC’s economy, it tends to be an informal and risky business that has also been used to fuel conflict. As a key source of income for armed groups and criminal…
Read MoreLocal Solution to Improved Transparency in Responsible Minerals Trade in Congo’s Ituri Province
How USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project is strengthening local civil society to carry out due diligence through a new information management platform By Kevin Eze Patrick, Guy and Yves* are lawyers from the city of Bunia in the Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) who work for Justice Plus, a…
Read MoreUSAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project Facilitates Landmark Agreement in Congo’s Ituri Province
By Kevin Eze The banks of the Ituri River are teeming with men and women searching for gold. For many of these individuals, artisanal mining is inherent, a livelihood passed down from generation to generation. For Aristote*, who has limited education and qualifications, it is a means of survival. Gold has been mined in the…
Read MoreResponsible Gold Innovation Facility Announces Five Inaugural Awards
Fund established by USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project, implemented by Global Communities in partnership with Levin Sources, to catalyze innovations advancing sustainable artisanal gold supply chain in Democratic Republic of the Congo To support activities and investments upstream in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) artisanal gold supply chain, USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean…
Read MoreA Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Eastern Congo
USAID’S Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project brokers a business deal to prevent communal violence and increase incomes for artisanal miners in Maniema province By Kevin Eze When Aimé* returned to his family’s mining concession after the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, he found throngs of strangers digging for gold. The area, situated in Kabotshome, in the…
Read MoreImproving Working Conditions and Security at Artisanal Gold Mine Sites in Eastern Congo
By Kevin Eze Even as a landowner, Diel’s* income falls short. Profits have not been enough to feed and care for his wife, six children and elderly parents. He and other artisanal and small-scale gold miners have been out of work due to the invasion of mine sites by military in eastern Democratic Republic of…
Read MoreInternational Day Of The African Child: Combatting The Worst Forms Of Child Labor In Artisanal Gold Mining Communities In Eastern DRC
Global Communities envisions a world where everyone has the freedom, means and ability to live and prosper with dignity. As the lead implementing agency for the USAID Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), we are working closely with artisanal gold supply chain actors, international and local civil society…
Read MoreUSAID Zahabu Safi and Black in Jewelry Coalition Connect Black Women Working Across Jewelry Supply Chain
On April 14, 2021, the USAID Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project co-hosted a virtual event with the Black in Jewelry Coalition to facilitate conversations between Black women working across the jewelry supply chain: mine to market. Titled “Sister to Sister”, the event connected women working on the front lines in the mining industry in DRC,…
Read MoreBlack in Jewelry Coalition and USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project Connect Women in the Jewelry Industry with Artisanal Gold Miners
New York, NY – March 31, 2021 – The Black in Jewelry Coalition (BIJC) and USAID’s Zahabu Safi (Clean Gold) Project will hold a unique fireside chat webinar, “Sister to Sister: Creating relationships to support responsible sourcing of artisanal gold from Africa.” This virtual event, which will be held Wednesday, April 14, at 10am ET,…
Read MoreASM Gold Can Change Lives for the Better
2020 left the jewelry sector shaken. The economic impacts of COVID-19 left many jewelers struggling to rebuild sales. As consumer demand for jewelry fell, the cost of gold peaked. At the same time, the moral and ethical issues raised by Black Lives Matter also trickled down to the sector. Several jewelers made the link between…
Read MoreResponsible Gold Mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Many communities in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) rely on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) as a primary livelihood. ASM is a significant driver of DRC’s economy. Approximately 15 percent of the national population directly or indirectly depends on income from ASM [International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, Report on Development of Regional…
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