{"id":6804,"date":"2026-06-11T16:47:06","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T16:47:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/home\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms"},"modified":"2026-06-11T17:18:26","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T17:18:26","slug":"report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","title":{"rendered":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press. <\/strong> <\/span>A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, controlled by the March 23 Movement, finds its way to global markets through complex supply chains that end in electronic products and vehicles sold worldwide.<\/p>\n

The report explained that the organization was able to trace the path of the disputed mineral and identified Rwandan companies exporting it, along with Chinese smelters processing it before it reaches major global companies and brands, including Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Sony. The report also accused the international tracking system for minerals, designed to ensure the safety of supply sources, of being effectively used to “clean” minerals coming from conflict areas instead of preventing their trade.<\/p>\n

A researcher from the local source stated that the investigation relied on direct testimonies from traders and those involved in smuggling operations between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, confirming that investigators witnessed mineral smuggling operations firsthand, with some receiving offers to purchase coltan extracted from the Rubaya area, one of the prominent mining regions controlled by the March 23 Movement.<\/p>\n

The researcher added that understanding smuggling networks requires communication with the parties involved, noting that several traders confirmed to the organization that they sell coltan extracted from conflict areas to Rwandan export companies.<\/p>\n

Regarding the connection of global technology companies to this mineral, the researcher clarified that these companies themselves publish the names of the smelters from which they obtain minerals in publicly available due diligence reports. Based on field testimonies and customs and export data, the organization was able to link some of these smelters to coltan coming from Rubaya.<\/p>\n

It was noted that smelting operations lead to the mixing of minerals from multiple sources, making it extremely difficult to trace the source of individual minerals; however, this does not exempt companies from the responsibility of verifying the risks associated with raw materials linked to armed conflicts and making purchasing decisions based on the results of these assessments.<\/p>\n

In response to repeated Rwandan denials of these accusations, the researcher pointed out that some Rwandan institutions, including the National Institute of Statistics, provide data that contradicts the figures presented by the Rwanda Development Board regarding the volume of local coltan production, which it uses to justify high export levels. The report also relied on data from United Nations reports and documented sources.<\/p>\n

The researcher emphasized that the continued flow of conflict-linked coltan into global markets reflects shortcomings in the due diligence processes of several companies operating in supply chains, despite the ongoing conflict in eastern Congo for over 25 years.<\/p>\n

The researcher urged companies to tighten verification mechanisms for mineral sources and exclude suppliers linked to armed conflicts, while calling on the international community to exert greater pressure on Rwanda, which he described as the “heart of this conflict and smuggling operations.”<\/p>\n

The recommendations from the local source included suspending military equipment exports to Rwanda, linking international development aid to the cessation of any support for the March 23 Movement, and imposing sanctions on the movement’s leaders and some Rwandan officials and companies benefiting from the exploitation of conflict-linked resources.<\/p>\n

According to the report, coltan extraction and trade activities in areas controlled by the March 23 Movement generate nearly $800,000 monthly, which the organization considers one of the main sources of funding for the armed movement in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.<\/p>\n

Find more news and analyses on Africa<\/span> on the Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press. A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, controlled by the March 23 Movement, finds its way to global markets through complex supply chains that end in electronic products and vehicles sold worldwide. The report explained that the organization was able […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":6802,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[120],"class_list":{"0":"post-6804","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-africa"},"yoast_head":"\nReport: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms - Africa Press English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Africa Press English\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"677\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\"},\"wordCount\":581,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\",\"name\":\"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms - Africa Press English\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg\",\"width\":960,\"height\":677,\"caption\":\"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Africa Press English\",\"description\":\"\u0623\u0648\u0644 \u0645\u0648\u0642\u0639 \u0625\u0641\u0631\u064a\u0642\u064a \u064a\u0643\u062a\u0628 \u0628\u0644\u063a\u0629 \u0628\u0644\u062f\u0627\u0646\u0647\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms - Africa Press English","description":"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms","og_description":"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","og_site_name":"Africa Press English","article_published_time":"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00","og_image":[{"width":960,"height":677,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms","datePublished":"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms"},"wordCount":581,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg","keywords":["Africa"],"articleSection":["Economy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms","name":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms - Africa Press English","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-11T16:47:06+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-11T17:18:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"A report by a local source following a year-long investigation revealed that coltan mined from the eastern","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/africa-home\/sites\/69\/2026\/06\/sm_1781198215.337331.jpg","width":960,"height":677,"caption":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/economy\/report-smuggled-congo-coltan-reaches-global-firms#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Report: Smuggled Congo Coltan Reaches Global Firms"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/","name":"Africa Press English","description":"\u0623\u0648\u0644 \u0645\u0648\u0642\u0639 \u0625\u0641\u0631\u064a\u0642\u064a \u064a\u0643\u062a\u0628 \u0628\u0644\u063a\u0629 \u0628\u0644\u062f\u0627\u0646\u0647","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6804"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6809,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804\/revisions\/6809"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6804"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6804"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6804"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}