Mapping Mining to the Sustainable Development Goals An Atlas

Integrate SDG16 into core business
Preventing company-community conflict.
The 2014 study, “Cost of Company-Community Conflict
in the Extractive Sector,” estimated that the cost to a
world-class ($3-5 billion) mining project of one week of
lost productivity due to temporary shutdowns or delay
is $20 million. 130 The magnitude of the costs highlights
the importance for companies to anticipate the scope
of their social, environmental and economic impacts,
and to understand how these may spark conflict.
Consistent and ongoing engagement with local
communities and other stakeholders, as well as formal
complaints and grievance mechanisms, are the
foundation for responding early to concerns, listening to
questions and sharing information. In addition,
companies can implement conflict assessments
(including as part of their environmental and social
impact assessments) that consider the links between
social change, expectations and the risk of conflict.
Implementing human rights impact assessments.
Companies have a responsibility to support and protect
human rights as defined in the UN Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. In 2011, the UN issued
the “Guiding Principles on Business and Human
Rights” to clarify the roles of business and government
in upholding and protecting human rights. Human
Rights Impact Assessments (HRIAs) are becoming
standard practice across the mining sector. They help
companies identify their responsibilities relevant to
human rights across the scope of their operations and
solutions to enhance and improve their performance.
HRIAs can also be complemented with an assessment
to determine the company’s conformance to the
Voluntary Principles for Security and Human Rights,
which provide guidelines for managing physical
security and the use of firearms and for training
security contractors to prevent the escalation of
conflicts.
Respecting free, prior and informed consent (FPIC)
and the special status of indigenous peoples.
Oxfam defines FPIC as “the principle that indigenous
peoples and local communities must be adequately
informed about projects that affect their lands in a
timely manner, free of coercion and manipulation, and
should be given the opportunity to approve or reject a
project prior to the commencement of all activities”. 131
ICMM defines FPIC as “a process based on good faith
negotiation, through which indigenous peoples can give
or withhold their consent to a project”. 132 Indigenous
peoples have unique cultural and spiritual ties to their
ancestral lands and special rights articulated in the UN
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 133
Companies must recognize the special status of
indigenous peoples and take care to respect FPIC if
mining activities impact indigenous lands and
communities.
Participating in conflict-free mineral certification
schemes.
Illegal small-scale mining can fuel illicit financial flows,
which can in turn fund armed conflict. Legislation,
including Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act in the
United States and the EU Accounting and
Transparency Directives in Europe, require companies
to verify that their raw materials are not sourced from
conflict zones. The international community, in
partnership with companies and civil society, has
devised various schemes to certify minerals and
metals – these include, among others, the Kimberley
Process Certification Scheme for diamonds and the
Conflict-Free Tin Initiative. The power of these
initiatives depends on the extent of their adoption.
Mining companies have a role to play by implementing
supply chain reviews for conflict mineral use.
Collaborate and leverage
Peace and transparency requires a multistakeholder
approach. A number of initiatives focus broadly on
transparency.
Spearheading transparency.
The ongoing work of the Extractive Industries
Transparency Initiative, Publish What You Pay, and
major efforts from NGOs, such as Oxfam,
Transparency International, Global Witness and the
Natural Resource Governance Institute, are
highlighting the importance of financial reporting for
mining. Transparency International’s 2012 publication
analysing the corporate reporting of the 105 largest
multinationals found that the best-performing sector
was the extractive industries. Mining companies
occupied the second, third and fourth spots, and six of
the top 10; no other industry sector came close.
However, while mining performed well in anti-corruption
programmes and organizational structure, its
performance in the third category (country-by-country
reporting), though favourable compared to the ratings
of multinationals in other sectors, was still poor. A new
report in 2014 showed that country-by-country
reporting was still holding the mining industry
back. 134 Companies can consider making their
contracts and project financial information – including
costing of services and intercompany payments –
public. These efforts contribute to the country’s
development by preventing illicit financial flows and
deterring extortion.
Promoting the rule of law.
Companies can promote the rule of law and good
governance in the countries and communities where
they work by respecting and complying with existing
legal frameworks and collaborating with government.
Governments need to have good laws, institutions and
processes in place to ensure accountability, stability,
equality and access to justice for all. This ultimately
leads to respect for human rights and the environment
and stability for business, knowing that all rights are
respected and protected. The UN Global Compact has
developed a guide for how business can promote the
rule of law through core business, public policy
engagement and collective action. 135
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