This Act aims to promote the development of national industries through the rational exploitation of mineral resources.

The first section of this issue brief reviews the largely under-recognized place of the ASM sector in national economies. Next, it describes briefly how ASM has been at the root of many resource conflicts in developing countries—particularly in west and central Africa. This is followed by a discussion of how the clarification of property rights contributes to the reduction of conflicts over mineral resources.

In Guinea, USAID uses participatory approaches to identify areas for artisanal mining and to collect data on mining operations and resource rights.
Continuing our series on participatory approaches to stregthen land tenure programming, this week, we will share the final example from our work in Guinea.

A working draft of a Washington Declaration Diagnostic Framework (also in French) has been prepared by USAID for use by the Working Group on Artisanal and Alluvial Production (WGAAP) of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS). This tool is intended to help countries assess the status of their artisanal mining sector, and implement the principles outlined in the "Washington Declaration on Integrating Development of Artisanal and Small Scale Diamond Mining with Kimberley Process Implementation.”

Artisanal mining – a livelihood for an estimated 20 million people around the world – has historically not been an area where USAID and other donors have invested substantial resources. While a wide range of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) practices occur throughout the world, the exploration, extraction and trade of diamonds have become increasingly viewed as controversial due to purported links with rebel movements, environmental destruction, and child labor.

Afghanistan has significant amounts of mineral resources according to an assessment completed by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2007. However, according to a recent article by the New York Times “the potential resource boom seems increasingly imperiled by corruption, violence and intrigue.” Control over land and resource rights are increasingly becoming a source of contention, especially as the government begins to make land concessions.

The visit of five MPs to PRADD-supported mining villages of Sangha-Mbaere in the Central African Republic (CAR) from September 27 to 30, 2010 was a success beyond expectations.

In Cote d'Ivoire, a UN-imposed embargo on the export of Ivoirian diamonds to other countries has been in place since 2005 due to concerns regarding the control of diamond-mining zones by former rebel groups as well as weak internal controls over the country's diamond mining sector. Given these concerns and the role USAID's Property Rights and Artisanal Diamond Development (PRADD) program has played in helping to improve countries with their Kimberley Process compliance, USAID commissioned an assessment of the land tenure and artisanal mining sector in Cote d'Ivoire in September 2012.

In Defence of Life follows the struggles and triumphs of four communities resisting large-scale mining projects in Colombia, the Philippines, South Africa and Romania.

Courageous environmental and human rights defenders from these communities describe how they have suffered and why they are standing firm to protect their families, land, water and life from destruction by mining.

Their inspiring David and Goliath struggles demonstrate that when injustice and destruction become globalised, so does resistance.

The West African coastline is home to
major industries, mining activities, peri-urban and
agro-industry, and tourism, as well as urban and seaside
residences, all of which generate waste and cause pollution.
Many areas along the coast also lack adequate wastewater and
solid waste management systems. As a result, large volumes
of untreated wastewater and solid waste are dumped into the
open, polluting the land and water. Water quality studies

Tourism provides a robust stream of
revenues for the country, with benefits that reverberate
widely through the economy. The sector generates the bulk of
exports for the country. As a relatively labor-intensive
sector, tourism serves as a robust source of good quality
jobs in the country, with the potential to alleviate
poverty. This report explores the contribution, the
potential, and the challenges that confront the sector. It

This paper analyzes the socioeconomic,
fiscal, and governance impact of gold mining in Mali. The
analysis finds that, at the national level, mining plays an
important role by contributing to export earnings and
overall government fiscal revenue. In 2013, the mining
sector represented 7 percent of gross domestic product,
contributed 1.5 percent to growth in total gross domestic
product, and accounted for 65 percent of total export