In the first half of 2010, the issue of conflict minerals has been put front and center. Due to the efforts of non-governmental organizations, certain governments and concerned consumers, participants at all levels of the supply chain for tantalum, tin and tungsten were forced to pay REAL attention to this long-neglected issue.
First: The problem
Now: The response
The first response came in the United States with the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act signed by President Obama. Now, Congo's President Joseph Kabila announced a full ban on all minerals mined in the eastern Congolese provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu and Maniema.
According to a recent release from the Enough Project, "The ban will not promote an end to the ongoing conflict unless it is accompanied by concrete plans to deliver army reform, certification of mineral exports, and opportunities for peaceful development." Export bans such as those proposed by the Congolese government are difficult to enforce as active smuggling of minerals to surrounding countries is reportedly common.
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