The Egmont Institute has the pleasure to invite you to an Africa Meeting on 12 October 2022 with Dr. Christoph Vogel, Research Director of the Insecure Livelihoods project at Ghent University. Dr. Vogel will discuss his latest book: “Conflict Minerals, Inc.: War, Profit, and White Saviourism in Eastern Congo”. In the twenty-first century, the relationship between violent conflict and natural resources has become a matter of intense public and academic debate.  Known as ‘digital minerals’ for their use in high-end technology, their exploitation and trade has been singled out in numerous media and United Nations reports as a key driver of violence, provoking an unprecedented popular outcry and prompting transnational efforts to promote ‘conflict-free’, ethical mining. Focusing on the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Conflict Minerals, Inc.  raises the question of whether international efforts to regulate resource extraction from war zones in the DRC have not done more harm than good.  Based on meticulous investigation and long-term fieldwork, this book analyses why the campaign against ‘unethical’ mining went awry, and radically disrupted eastern Congo’s political economy. It dissects the evolution of the conflict minerals paradigm, the policy responses it triggered and their impact on artisanal miners.

This event is by invitation only. The working language will be English and the meeting will be held under Chatham House rule.

Participants should register by 10 October

(Photo credit; European Parliament)