Resources

The present paper summarizes the lessons learnt by SDC and its cooperation partners at governmental,  institutional and community  level  during the past  two  decades. It is dedicated to the millions of artisanal  miners and their  families who deserve  a life in dignity, and intended as  a  contribution  to  the  common  global  goal  of  reducing mercury emissions.

Drawing on cases in two provinces, Kratie and Ratanakiri, the study examines why a nuanced approach is needed that takes into account multiple types of extraction activity and multiple perspectives on how rural stakeholder participation could work in the extractive sector. The article analyzes policy options to sensitively address rural development dynamics in mining areas, suggesting key roles that future research can play in generating useful contextual knowledge that can help improve resource regulation, rural livelihood support services and regional land use planning.

This article examines the recentralization of power in this growing informal sector, exploring how heavy-handed implementation of national reforms contributed to livelihood insecurity. The study emphasizes how national officials invoked “formalization” rationales for mining policy shifts that obscured their underlying political and economic drivers, disempowering local district authorities and deepening the marginalization of informal livelihoods.

While various past development efforts have sought to reduce mercury-related problems, we conclude that sustainable development should seek to intertwine knowledge-sharing on environmental goals with concrete ways of improving economic well-being. We demonstrate how such models of knowledge-sharing can help to catalyze local innovation, technology-sharing and community organization. This paper discusses how this knowledge can be applied by governments to create capacity building policies as well as regulations that support sustained improvement in mining standards. 

Este estudio nos ha permitido tener una visión detallada de la dimensión regional del problema, siendo uno de los hallazgos más relevantes la importante brecha de información oficial que limita el alcance y efectividad de las políticas de Estado para hacer frente a la minería ilegal e informal. A esta realidad se suma la heterogeneidad de criterios entre cada país para definir y medir los problemas de la ilegalidad e informalidad en minería. 

A growing number of governments and donors are promoting the formalization of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). They believe that doing so puts them in a better position to govern the sector, and manage the social and environmental impacts of its activities. This paper reflects critically on attempts made to formalize ASM in Madre de Dios in Peruvian Amazonia. 

Can state gold-buying programmes (SGBPs) be an effective tool for governments – to not only bolster state financial reserves, but also to reform the sector, raising its standards and improving its environmental and social outcomes? And can these programmes operate in countries that often lack institutional capacity, infrastructure and stability? This paper analyses case studies in five countries, drawing out the challenges and potential factors for success in developing an effective SGBP.

This report argues that recognition of this diversity of responsible vs. irresponsible operators will be a key first step in allowing the government to develop adequate policies to effectively interact with the sector. The current policy of criminalisation, on the contrary, risks undermining an industry which represents one of the few viable sources of income for the country's impoverished groups.