As of June 2014, 1,321 companies filed their first conflict minerals reports with the SEC, as required by Section 1502. In 2015, Global Witness and Amnesty International analysed 100 of these initial submissions. Of the companies surveyed, 21% of the companies in our sample met the minimum legal requirements. While some companies have made significant progress since then, many companies still have a long way to go. Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo not determinable — If the Company is unable to determine for a temporary period of two years (or four years for small reporting companies) whether the minerals in its products originate in affected countries or have financed or facilitated armed groups in those countries, these products are considered „indeterminable conflict in the DRC“. While most submissions suggested that companies were using standardized tools and programs to determine the source of their minerals, submissions and industry experts identified challenges associated with these tools and programs. For example, an estimated 96% of companies reported using a supplier survey to gather information, but many companies did not receive responses from all their suppliers, which could number in the hundreds of their supply chains of some companies. In 2010, the U.S. Congress passed a landmark bill. The „conflict minerals“ provision, commonly referred to as Section 1502 of the Dodd Frank Act, requires the U.S. publicly traded companies to audit their supply chains for tin, tungsten, tantalum and gold whether they may originate in Congo or its neighbors, take steps to address risks they find, and report on their efforts to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) annually. Companies are not encouraged to stop sourcing from the region, but must demonstrate that they are working with due diligence – now known as „due diligence“ – to ensure they are not funding armed groups or human rights abuses.
Once Congo`s precious minerals have been extracted, they enter global supply chains. From there, they are processed and processed into a wide variety of consumer and industrial products. This gives companies that use and profit from these minerals a unique opportunity to shed light on these historically secret supply chains and the responsibility to do their part to curb this illicit trade to ensure profits reach the Congolese people. The final rule requires a company to file a disclosure on a new Form for SEC filing (Form SD). In 2010, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Act, which directs the Commission to enact rules requiring certain companies to disclose their use of conflict minerals if those minerals are „necessary for the functionality or production of a product manufactured by those companies.“ According to the law, these minerals include tantalum, tin, gold or tungsten. The United States has been trying to improve security in the Democratic Republic of Congo for more than 2 decades. However, according to the US State Department and the United Nations, the conflict persists and has contributed to serious human rights violations and displacement. Armed groups continue to profit from mining and the trade in „conflict minerals,“ according to the state. The provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 required the SEC, among other things, to issue disclosure and reporting requirements for the use of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries. In 2012, the SEC adopted a conflict minerals disclosure rule that requires companies to file specialized disclosure reports beginning in 2014 and annually thereafter.
The bill also included a provision for the GAO to evaluate, among other things, the effectiveness of SEC regulations in promoting peace and security in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries. The final rule applies to a company that uses minerals such as tantalum, tin, gold or tungsten if: Trade in natural resources finances conflicts and human rights abuses around the world. For decades, trade in minerals, gems and other commodities has played a central role in fueling some of the world`s most brutal conflicts and weakening already fragile states. Global Witness has found links between abuse, fighting and trade in the Central African Republic, Myanmar, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and elsewhere. For the past 15 years, Global Witness has investigated the links between the lucrative trade in tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold and the armed conflict in eastern Congo. This conflict has affected several countries in Central Africa, and the war and its consequences have resulted in the death of millions of people. The conflict in Congo is complex and underpinned by a web of long-standing political tensions, ethnic grievances and land disputes.
