EGC Responsible Sourcing Standard

On 31st March 2021, EGC released its ‘EGC Responsible Sourcing Standard’ (“the EGC Standard”) to support the establishment and maintenance of safe and strictly controlled artisanal cobalt mining zones in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The EGC Standard, which was developed following extensive collaboration with Trafigura and non-profit organisation Pact, amongst others, will be updated systematically to reflect evolving risks and stakeholder perspectives. The implementation of the EGC Standard on the ground will be supported by Pact through the capacity-building training of local stakeholders, including EGC and the mining cooperatives. Pact will also conduct ongoing monitoring while supporting and providing guidance to local stakeholders for the assessment and mitigations of identified risks.

The EGC Standard will apply to all sites overseen by EGC and has been designed to complement, and indeed go beyond, regulatory compliance as determined by the Agency for Regulation and Control of the Strategic Mineral Substance Markets (ARECOMS) which has regulatory oversight over EGC.

The EGC Standard aligns with DRC law, the DRC mining regulations as well as the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas.

External standards benchmarked as part of the development process for the EGC Standard included Certified Trading Chains (CTC), the Craft Code, Amnesty International’s Principles and the Responsible Minerals Initiative's Risk Readiness Assessment.

Following their appointment by EGC’s Technical Committee, international due diligence experts ‘Kumi’ will conduct quarterly assurance reviews against the EGC Standard at every EGC site.

How can I contribute to the EGC Responsible Sourcing Standard?

The EGC Standard is a ‘living document’ and will be updated on an ongoing basis. The intention is that the update process will be dynamic. It will respond to challenges faced by those involved in the daily execution of the project, but also to the evolving views and aspirations of stakeholders.

While the EGC Standard builds on a variety of similar standards and documentation, it also reflects the deep and practical experience of the members of the EGC Technical Committee. Any comments and suggested improvements that our stakeholders make in relation to the EGC Standard will be discussed within the EGC Technical Committee, prior to amendments being made where appropriate.

Changes to the EGC Standard will be implemented in a systematic manner so as to ensure that those responsible for implementation, namely workers on each site, Cooperatives, EGC and buyers are familiarised with details of the improvement(s) and, where necessary, provided with training.

We look forward to receiving your comments – thank you for your contribution.

Comment puis-je contribuer aux Normes d'Approvisionnement Responsable de l’EGC?

Les normes EGC est un «document évolutif» qui sera mis à jour en permanence. L'intention est que le processus de mise à jour soit dynamique. Il répondra aux défis auxquels sont confrontés les personnes impliquées dans l'exécution au jour le jour du projet, mais aussi à l'évolution des points de vue et des aspirations des parties prenantes.

Bien que les Normes de l’EGC s'appuient sur une variété de normes et de documents similaires, elles reflètent également l'expérience approfondie et pratique des membres du comité technique de l’EGC. Tous les commentaires et suggestions d'améliorations que nos parties prenantes apportent par rapport aux Norme de l’EGC seront discutés au sein du comité technique de l’EGC, avant que des modifications ne soient apportées au document, le cas échéant.

Les modifications apportées aux Normes de l’EGC seront mises en œuvre de manière systématique, afin de garantir que les responsables de la mise en œuvre, à savoir les travailleurs de chaque site, les coopératives, l’EGC et les acheteurs, soient familiarisés avec les détails des améliorations et, le cas échéant, y soient formés.

Nous attendons de recevoir vos commentaires - merci pour votre contribution.