Work is underway to ensure the widest possible dissemination of the Guidance and its active use by companies throughout the mineral supply chain (3Ts and gold), industry associations, financial institutions, and civil society organisations.
   

Implementing the Guidance in Africa's Great Lakes region

The 3Ts pilot implementation phase

From May 2011 to August 2012, the OECD, the ICGLR, and the UN Group of Experts on the DRC worked together on the pilot implementation of the Guidance and its 3Ts Supplement by companies sourcing minerals from Africa's Great Lakes region.
>> Read the action plan adopted in May 2011.

 
Over 100 companies, both upstream and downstream, and industry associations volunteered to take part. Participating companies have demonstrated  how they perform supply chain due diligence through a peer learning process intended to help them meet reporting obligations and the expectations of managers, customers, regulators and the public.

Implementation reports
The reports identify concrete best practices and helpful implementation tools to further assist companies to respect human rights and avoid contributing to conflict through their mineral or metal purchasing decisions and practices.

• Final upstream 3Ts report, January 2013 [en français]
• Final downstream 3Ts report, January 2013
   
• Interim upstream 3Ts report, June 2012 | Interim downstream 3Ts report, June 2012
   
• Upstream baseline 3Ts report, November 2011 | Downstream baseline 3Ts report, November 2011

Implementation of the Gold Supplement 

In 2013 the OECD is hosting a multi-stakeholder forum on the implementation of due diligence in the gold supply chain in co-operation with the IGCLR and the UN Group of Experts on the DRC.

 
The multi-stakeholder process is designed to foster constructive dialogue, mutual understanding, and peer-learning on due diligence practices by bringing together the key players across the gold supply chain. This is a voluntary exercise, welcoming participants from OECD and partner countries, regional and international organisations, as well as civil society and experts in the field. The initial phase will last for 12 months.
 

This process will facilitate constructive discussion around workable approaches for due diligence implementation. This includes designing innovative solutions to create  market opportunities for responsibly sourced gold from conflict-affected and high risk areas, in particular from artisanal and small-scale sources.
 

The primary geographic focus would be on gold sourced from Africa’s Great Lakes region, however given the global scope of the Guidance, the gold implementation programme may also include activities covering other regions in the world.
 

Text of the Guidance

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>> access text

Simplified guide

This guide explains the basics of upstream due diligence in the supply chain of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold from conflict-affected and high-risk areas in Africa’s Great Lakes region.

[ English | French | Lingala | Mandarin | Swahili ]

Five Democrats urge the US SEC to use Guidance, 23 September 2011
   

Conflict Minerals: Hands-Off Is Not a Solution – join the debate on our OECD insights blog

Meetings

5th meeting of the ICGLR-OECD-UN forum on implementing due diligence in the 3Ts and gold supply chains, Paris, 2-3 May 2013

4th meeting of the ICGLR-OECD-UN forum on implementing due diligence in the 3Ts and gold supply chains, Paris, 28-30 November 2012

3rd meeting of the ICGLR-OECD-UN forum on implementing due diligence in the 3Ts supply chain, Paris, 3-4 May 2012

2nd meeting of the ICGLR-OECD-UN multi-stakeholder forum on implementing due diligence for responsible mineral supply chains, Paris, 29-30 November 2011
 
ICGLR-OECD-UN Meeting on implementing due diligence recommendations for responsible mineral supply chains, Paris, 5-6 May 2011

Documents and links