A new report from the Rights Lab at the University of Nottingham has highlighted the human and environmental impacts of cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and made recommendations to businesses and policymakers to improve working conditions.
Cobalt is an essential component in the manufacture of most lithium-ion (L-ion) rechargeable batteries found in smartphones, tablets, laptops, and electric vehicles (EVs).
The metal has therefore become indispensable to a gadget-driven lifestyle, as well as the "green transition" from fossil fuels toward cleaner energy sources.
In 2024, 76% of the world's supply of cobalt was mined in the southeastern provinces of the DRC: Haut-Katanga and Lualaba.
The violent conditions in which cobalt is mined in the DRC have received considerable attention in recent years, yet consumer-facing technology companies and EV manufacturers continue to promote their cobalt supply chains from the DRC as fully audited and compliant with international human rights norms and environmental sustainability practices.
A new report, led by British Academy Global Professor Siddharth Kara at Nottingham Rights Lab, highlights the human and environmental impacts of cobalt mining, and makes several recommendations to policymakers and companies working within the EV sector on how they might improve their processes.
Research teams completed 1,431 surveys with artisanal and small-scale miners (ASM), of which 895 (62.5%) were in Lualaba province, and 536 (37.5%) were in Haut-Katanga province.
Of the respondents:
- 36.8% were in forced labour
- 9.2% were in child labour
- 6.5% were in debt bondage
- 4.4% had been trafficked
- 87.8% began working as artisanal miners due to the lack of any alternative means of survival
- They received an average daily income of $3.28 (males: $3.52; females: $1.84)
- 70% would rather quit working as artisanal miners but were unable to do so, primarily due to the lack of any alternate means of survival
- None were members of a trade union, as none exist
- None had written agreements for their work
Siddharth Kara, whose book 'Cobalt Red' on the topic was a Pulitzer Prize finalist, led the research alongside experts from the DRC, and hopes the findings will encourage businesses and policymakers to alter their policies and practices.
He said of the findings: "This is the most comprehensive research study to date of the risks of forced labour in cobalt mining in the DRC. I hope that businesses and policymakers working in this area will take the findings on board and alter their practices accordingly.
The data we have uncovered in this study highlights the risks that many miners are facing today, in an industry upon which many rely for their smartphones, laptops and EV batteries."
The Blood Batteries report's recommendations include an independent due diligence initiative on cobalt supply chains that is conducted by Congolese academics, civil society, and artisanal mining communities, to ensure that downstream partners are adhering to national and international laws on human rights and environmental sustainability.
The full report is available on the Rights Lab website here.
