With proper education and investment, artisanal and small-scale gold mining presents a tremendous opportunity to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Twelve of the 17 SDGs overlap with the development of a more responsible and sustainable ASGM sector, demonstrating the real—and often unrecognized—prospect for the deployment of socially responsible investing and impact investment.
By bringing ASGM together with new investment, business, and technical partners, an estimated 10-20 million miners could access modern machinery and training to upgrade their production practices, alleviating poverty and reducing environmental impact.
Goal 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere
ASGM Objective: Grow prosperous local operations for the economic benefit of miners and their communities
Our Approach: Facilitate investment to help formalize the ASGM industry
Goal 3:Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
ASGM Objective: Provide a safe and healthy environment for miners and their communities
Our Approach: Eliminate the use of mercury in ASGM processing and provide training for safe operations
Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
ASGM Objective: Empower women miners
Our Approach: Encourage and support the participation of women in all aspects of ASGM through training, opportunities, and capacity building
Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy
ASGM Objective: Reduce the use of fossil fuels in ASGM operations
Our Approach: Work with the ASGM sector to develop affordable, clean energy alternatives to replace current methods used to power operations
Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
ASGM Objective: Grow the local ASGM sector with sustainable, safe, good paying jobs
Our Approach: Formalize, build capacity, and bring investment to the ASGM sector
Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
ASGM Objective: Improve technology and enable miners to operate in a socially and environmentally acceptable manner
Our Approach: Work with local miners to provide practical, state of the art mining and processing solutions that are efficient and do not use mercury
Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries
ASGM Objective: Grow local industry and create more wealth for long-term development in ASGM communities
Our Approach: Facilitate access to formal gold markets and encourage good business practices between gold buyers and miners that result in fair prices and more wealth at the local level
Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
ASGM Objective: Achieve a responsible gold business from production through to end user
Our Approach: Work with all actors in the supply chain to support and encourage ethical and environmentally acceptable practices
Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
ASGM Objective: Reduce the carbon footprint and other impacts on climate from artisanal and small-scale gold mining
Our Approach: Work with mining communities to develop renewable energy alternatives to power their operations and to minimize deforestation
Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
ASGM Objective: Minimize the impact of mining activities on rivers, lakes, and oceans
Our Approach: Work with mining communities to use practices and materials that do not harm water systems or their ecosystems, including eliminating mercury and other chemical discharges
Goal 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
ASGM Objective: Implement practices that support responsible ecosystem management practices
Our Approach: Design and build mercury free process systems. Promote, design and implement mining and tailings management to minimize environmental footprint and impacts on deforestation, biodiversity and pollution
Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
ASGM Objective: Implement practices that support responsible ecosystem management practices
Our Approach: Bring business expertise and investment to ASGM to create profitable, sustainable businesses underpinned by practices consistent with the SDGs
