OPENING THE BLACK BOX: LOCAL INSIGHTS INTO THE FORMA AND INFORMAL MERCURY TRADE REVEALED
Mercury is continually used in the artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sector even though it is highly poisonous to both humans and the environment. There are an increasing number of projects, initiatives and conventions, including the Minamata Convention, working on the reduction of mercury use in ASGM. However, a long-lasting change away from mercury is hard to achieve and there seem to be mechanisms in place that prevent a mercury-free ASGM sector. As mercury trade and use is mostly regulated and restricted, a lot of mercury used for ASGM is traded informally. To better understand the factors at play, the mercury supply chain of both formal and informal mercury
was investigated in eight countries with large ASGM sectors (Bolivia, Suriname, Guyana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burkina Faso and the Philippines). Investigations on formal and informal imports, domestic trade routes, the supply chain and actors involved established a similar picture across the different regions.
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THE CITIZENS’ MANIFESTO ON MINING AND PETROLEUM 2021-2026
This manifesto is a compilation of citizens’ voices. It is a concerted appeal by Ugandans to the next cohort of political leaders in the 2021-2026 political cycle to strive to ensure that development and management of petroleum and mining industry resources is fair, just, inclusive and sustainable.
This manifesto has been developed by the combined efforts of Publish What You Pay Uganda (PWYP-U), Action Aid International Uganda, Africa Centre for Energy and Mineral Policy (ACEMP), Centre for Social and Environmental Rights (CSER), Pro-Biodiversity Conservationists in Uganda (PROBICOU) and Oxfam in Uganda.
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