Mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo, January 2011
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Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesFifty years after the assassination of Congolese Independence leader Patrice Lumumba, the ordinary people of Congo are no closer to controlling and benefitting from the vast mineral wealth their country possess, reports Christian Aid in this photo essay. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesEvery day, hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of precious minerals such as cassiterite (tin-ore) and coltan are mined illegally and bought by foreign multi-nationals for use in the manufacture of mobile phones, DVD players and computers. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesThe DR Congo is one of the poorest countries in the world, with 80 per cent of the population living on less than U.S. 20 cents a day. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesAccording to World Bank data up to 10 million people (including children) are dependent on, or forced to eke out a living in the artisanal (small scale) mining industry. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesThe mines are often controlled by armed groups, who use local labour to mine the minerals, taxing them heavily for their finds before selling the stones on to local dealers (seen here) their eventual destination, the global electronics industry in the West and Asia. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesA local minerals dealer at work: Because these illicit transactions are not subject to taxation, the vast profits gleaned from the mines are of little benefit to the long-term development of the country and its people - instead much of the money generated fuels ongoing conflict in the east of the country. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesJean Bosco Mukesa is an on-the-spot buyer, paying miners just $3 per kilo before selling it on for a profit in the local town he is just one small link in the long chain of middle men who shift the DRCs mineral resources out of the country. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesMost have little choice but to work in the mines, either as a result of grinding poverty or because they have fled their homes and businesses to escape the countrys chronic conflict - a war that has claimed more than five million lives. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesWorking conditions are desperate. Women spend all day under the fierce sun patiently washing sand and searching for the small mineral deposits. One woman said; I dont believe anyone can get rich from these natural resources, people only do this to survive. -
Credit: Christian Aid/Tom Stoddart/Getty ImagesThe DRC and other developing countries need more effective international rules to ensure that multinational companies, including mining firms, pay the correct taxes on profits they make. Christian Aid supports local organisations in Congo who are working for greater accountability in the management of the countrys resources.
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