Africa: China Driving Regional Conflict & Child Labor in Africa's Gold and Cobalt Industry

Experts Tell Congress: As Many as 40,000 Children Trapped in China-Dominated Africa Mining Nightmare

A panel of experts testified to Congress that Chinese companies mining in Africa are creating a "catastrophic and unacceptable" situation.

Africa: China Driving Regional Conflict & Child Labor in Africa's Gold and Cobalt Industry

[U.S. House of Representatives] The Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) controversial actions in Africa's mining sector and its damage to human rights, exacerbation of labor exploitation and regional instability--particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Ethiopia and Ghana--were the focus of a congressional hearing chaired today by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), chairman of the House Foreign Affair Subcommittee on Africa.

US lawmakers urged to stop China’s critical minerals ‘exploitation’ of DR Congo

House subcommittee hears that the cobalt-rich African nation’s population is suffering as ruling elites and their partners profit.

LIVE NOW: House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on ‘How the CCP Fuels Conflict and Exploitation in Africa’

The House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Metals, Minerals, and Mining: How the CCP Fuels Conflict and Exploitation in Africa” at 10 a.m. ET on March 25. Witnesses include Sasha Lezhnev, senior policy adviser at The Sentry; Thierry Dongala, founder of Accountable Africa; Joseph Nguramo, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council Scowcroft Center; and Obert Bore, responsible business and human rights program lead at the …

SARW Calls for Urgent Action on Environmental and Labour Violations in Zambia’s Mining Sector

Zambia’s Mining Sector Plunges into a Health, Safety and Environmental Crisis: SARW Calls for Immediate Action to curb persistent Environmental and Labour Violations 26 March 2025: Lusaka, Zambia — The Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW) expresses deep concern over recent incidents in Zambia’s mining sector that signal serious environmental, social and governance (ESG) failures. The acid spills in the Kafue River and the tragic death of a work…

The Democratic Republic of the Congo becomes a geopolitical battleground for control of its vast mineral resources, with China and the United States as the main actors. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is at the center of an intense geopolitical struggle for control of its vast mineral resources. China has dominated the exploitation and refining of minerals such as cobalt, lithium and coltan in the DRC for decades, which has generated …