RAID
has been at the forefront in pressing the World Bank to instigate a
review of all mining contracts in the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) that were concluded during the war and subsequent transitional
period. (See RAID's report
on the economic argument for renegotiation.)
In the early 1990s, the DRC’s state
mining enterprise, Gecamines, was the most lucrative source of revenue.
Today, Gecamines has been stripped of virtually all of its assets and
ore bodies through a number of disadvantageous contracts.
RAID is seeking a commitment from all
companies that are confident in the fairness of their contracts with
Gecamines to demonstrate this by agreeing to an independent,
transparent re-evaluation of their agreements. As part of this
commitment, companies would renegotiate any parts of their contracts
that are not consistent with the World Bank’s recommendations.
For journalists: If you are
interested in receiving updates on this issue, please send your contact
details to media@raid-uk.org
