Democratic Republic of Congo: Anvil Mining Congo, SARL-01/World Bank President Request
Case Tracker
Complaint Overview
Request of President of World Bank Group
Project Information
$13.6 million (Guarantee)
Synopsis
Dikulushi is a copper-silver mine located in the Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The project was developed by Anvil Mining, a Canadian company, and had been in production since 2002. In October 2004, the town of Kilwa, 50 kilometers from Dikulushi, was taken over by a small rebel group. In response to a direct request, Anvil Mining provided logistical support to the armed forces of DRC. In order to regain control over the town, the armed forces allegedly killed civilians, looted and carried out other crimes such as extortion and illegal detention.
In July 2005, Rights and Accountability in Development, a UK-based non-governmental organization wrote to the President of the World Bank Group, Paul Wolfowitz, on behalf of a number of NGOs, alleging a number of failures in the due diligence undertaken by MIGA. Subsequently, former President Wolfowitz requested that CAO audit MIGA’s due diligence with a particular focus on security and human rights. The CAO’s audit focused on security and conflict; adherence to MIGA’s environmental and social review procedures; and new commitments under the Extractive Industries Review (EIR) Management Response.
The compliance audit, completed in November 2005, made the following findings: - • MIGA due diligence analysis failed to address the possibility of the project influencing the dynamics of conflict or the issue of whether security provisions might be detrimental to the local community; • The Environmental and Social Review Procedures adhered to by MIGA should have addressed the potential for the mine to exacerbate local tensions leading to heightened insecurity for local communities; • MIGA did not fully comprehend the implications of implementing the principles entailed in the EIR Management Response, nor the capacity for their client to properly implement them. The audit emphasized that MIGA ought to engage with Anvil Mining in order to ensure that anticipated development benefits came to fruition and shortcomingswere identified and resolved. Nevertheless, the audit acknowledged the positive steps undertaken by MIGA to engage with NGOs at the project level for the first time. The audit was closed in February 2006.