Main agenda:

Session 6 [27 Apr 2023 | 7:45 PM – 9:00 PM]:
Roadblocks for responsible gold: how can industry efforts translate into actual results on the ground?

Extractives, Crime and Conflict: Deep Dives and Global Perspective

Criminality in the extractives sector poses a major barrier to advancing due diligence for responsible mineral sourcing. The challenge is further complicated, and impacts even greater, when extraction takes place in places experiencing high-levels of conflict and insecurity. This partner session will present deep dives into the dynamics between extractives, crime and insecurity followed by a discussion on similarities and differences in criminal threats, conflict and security dynamics, and implications for due diligence and responsible sourcing efforts.

Time and Location: Wednesday 26 April 16:30 – 18:00 Room CC20, 62 persons English and French

Lead Organisation: Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime

Panel

• Moderator: John Collins, Director of Academic Engagement and JIED Editor-in-Chief
• Marcena Hunter, GI-TOC, Thematic Lead on Extractives (Africa, Afghanistan)
• Désiré Nikiema (Burkina Faso): GI-TOC consultant
• Thierry Vircoulon (Wagner, DRC), GI-TOC Consultant
• Alice Fereday (Sahel): GI-TOC Senior Analyst
• Gideon Ofosu-Peasah (energy minerals): GI-TOC analyst

Gold, crime and conflict in West Africa: How research can shape action

In the gold production hub of West Africa, where artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is pervasive, the relationship between the gold sector, criminality, instability and violence is nuanced and complex with regional dynamics. As such, research into the sector, including criminal networks and drivers of fragility, is critical to identifying entrenched and emerging challenges and to shape action, including responsible sourcing from the region. This panel presents research, current interventions in the region, and discussion on how research can be used to shape action.

Time and Location: Thursday 27 April 18:00 – 19:00 Auditorium, 110 persons French and English

Lead Organisations: Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC); Equal Access International (EAI)

Panel

• Moderator: Alice Fereday. GI-TOC Senior Analyst
• Marcena Hunter, GI-TOC, Thematic Lead on Extractives
• Côte d’Ivoire: Hélène Helbig de Balzac, Datastake, ASGM expert; Coulibaly Aboubacar KOUADIO, EAI
• Burkina Faso: Désiré Nikiema, Burkina Faso ARM lead and GI-TOC consultant; Derra Hamado, IMPACT
• Ghana: Ishmael Quaicoe, UMAT
• Alan Martin, London Bullion Market Association (LBMA)

Other Partner Sessions

28 Apr 2023 | 12:30 AM – 2:00 AM
Gold flows in Africa: Quantifying the production and trade of the precious metal to combat illicit flows