The expected massive increase in the demand for electric vehicles is likely to lead to much increased demand for cobalt, much of which comes from Katanga in DRC. It is important that the purchasing is set up in such a way that the people of Congo benefit from the trade, and the Companies Group are researching and campaigning on this issue.
We have formed links with other groups working in the field, such as Amnesty International, the London Mining Network and RAID. In 2023, we made a submission to the Foreign Affairs Committee for its Inquiry into Critical Minerals. We attended the Battery Cells and Systems Expo at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, and made some useful contacts there. We have discussed the responsible sourcing of minerals with some of the technical team of Salford University. We are reading documents to try to get a better understanding of Chinese companies, and how we might effectively lobby them. We are focusing on cobalt, which is needed for batteries for electric vehicles, and is mined in Katanga but not in North and South Kivu where we have strongest links. However, where possible we try to link our campaigning work in the UK with the visits to mining sites and meetings of stakeholders organized in the DRC by our Committee members George Bani and Joel Amani. Our campaigning in the UK is strengthened by the fact that we have close contact with what is happening in the mining areas of DRC. We have had useful contact with the publication “Ethical Consumer” which is concerned about ethical aspects of mineral purchasing. We are considering writing to car manufacturers, asking them how they monitor the materials that they use.
We received a grant of £1,000 from Manchester and Warrington Area Quaker Meeting to fund Joel Amani’s initial visits to mining areas to report back and feed into discussion on what we should do. We received a £5,000 grant from a charitable trust to fund meetings and workshops in the DRC. We received donations of £832 from an Ashram of which one of our committee is a member. They give a proportion of their income to a good cause each year, and the money is being used for work in DRC. Manchester & Warrington Area Quaker Meeting contributed £520 to fund George Bani’s attendance at a Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) meeting in Uganda, where he spoke about the work of Conflict Minerals Campaign. Other income is from small donations from members and supporters. We would like to make regular payments to George Bani and Joel Amani for their work, to ensure the future of Conflict Minerals Campaign in DRC. So far we have only been able to fund their expenses. We have a new programme of work in the DRC, and are about to start fundraising to make this possible.
People are not well informed about DRC, as it rarely features in the news. We educate ourselves and others by:
• Running Learning/Discussion Groups on Zoom, to learn about topics related to our work.
• Running Special Interest Groups at the Quakers’ Britain Yearly Meeting, and participating in the Groups Fair
• Participating in Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) and Quaker Africa Interest Group (QAIG) Zoom meetings
• Writing for “The Friend” and Quaker Area Meeting newsletters
• We have a Facebook page to share up to date information: www.facebook.com/groups/1180515416062354
• We welcome invitations to speak, lead discussion, or write articles. Contact conflictmineralscampaign@gmail.com
YEARLY MEETING GATHERING 2024
CMC will hold a Special Interest Group on Tue 9 July at 3pm on Zoom at the Quaker annual gathering on the theme “Reparations for Conflict Minerals in Congo - A session exploring what actions people in the UK can take to make reparations for conflict caused by mineral extraction in the Democratic Republic of Congo and how to relieve suffering of people caused by minerals used in phones and laptops around the world.We will also be at the online Groups Fair on Sat 27 July from 12.45pm to 2.15pm.
CURRENT AND RECENT WORK IN THE UK
MUSEUM EXHIBITION
We are working towards having a museum exhibition in Manchester on the topic of minerals, to raise awareness of the DRC and issues around mineral extraction. We aim to have samples of different minerals with information about them, and short videos about everyday life in the mining areas of East Congo.
SUBMISSION TO FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE ON CRITICAL MINERALS
We did a submission to the Committee, to draw attention to the need to consider how our use of minerals affects the people in mining areas of the DRC.
BATTERIES EXHIBITION
Members of our group have attended the huge annual exhibition at the Birmingham Exhibition Centre, to learn, to network, and to ask questions to draw attention to the people of Congo and how they are affected by the extraction of miner als that are needed for battery production, and will be needed more as electrical vehicles become the norm.
MEETING IN THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT
Sandra Dutson represented us as a panellist at a meeting on Fair Trade held in a room in the Houses of Parliament. We plan to look into whether it might be possible for co-operatives in East Congo to work towards registering as Fair Trade suppliers.
LEARNING/DISCUSSION GROUPS
We continue to hold Learning/Discussion Groups online, to educate ourselves and others. Topics have included the Pope’s visit to the DRC, our work in the DRC and our work in the UK. The next one (date not yet fixed) will be an opportunity to hear from Joel Amani about his work in Luhwindja.