(1)<\/sup> World Bank – Achieving Sustainable and Inclusive Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Recognising that artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is a source of employment and income generation in many countries, we are committed to advancing the formalisation and professionalisation of ASM to reduce its risk to people, environment and our business. This commitment is backed by our pledge to co-operate with the governments, communities, NGOs and international bodies focused on crafting a co-existence framework promoting safe and sustainable futures for all.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n Our approach to ASM is based on the belief that a sustainable ASM industry can exist through the establishment of a co-existence framework that recognises different country-by-country dynamics and regulatory provisions. This can only be achieved through multi-stakeholder partnerships that leverage capacity building and improved access to safer, cleaner and more efficient methods of mining. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We maintain our view that ASM challenges are best addressed through a multi-stakeholder approach, where governments take a lead role. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Our ASM Framework, which outlines our guiding principles and provides a consolidated Group view of approaches and strategies, is premised on legal provisions and the socio-economic context of the host countries. Fully supporting strategies to regulate and formalise ASM, we advocate for co-existence of our operations with legitimate ASM while guarding the safety and security of our employees, communities, assets, and tenements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The key elements of this approach are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2024, we initiated the review of our Group-level ASM Management Standard to increase our collaborative efforts through inclusive stakeholder engagement, to enable co-existence and reduce the safety, health, environmental, security and social impact of ASM. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Last updated in 2019, the refreshed standard aims to progress our formalisation programmes and improves our ASM safety awareness training programme. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Formalisation efforts during 2024 included efforts to support the implementation of the new government of Guinea\u2019s ASM formalisation project alongside the UN Environmental Programme. The project aims to communicate and apply lessons learned across sites and review and amend 11 articles in the Mining Code to support formalisation projects. Field missions and discussions were held with miners, local authorities, United Nations, and the project, and initiatives to support access to finance and mercury-free technologies are underway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n ASM, a key economic, environmental and social risk, is an incredibly complex challenge that calls for careful balance between economic, environmental and social interests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It demands deliberate, co-ordinated action from multiple stakeholders if it is to accelerate the structural changes necessary to secure legitimate mining assets, encourage formalisation and improve the safety and environmental outcomes for artisanal and small-scale miners and the communities who rely on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The significant increase in ASM activity and illegal mining globally is driven by steep increases in the cost of living, endemic unemployment, particularly in developing economies, geopolitical conflicts and the effects of climate change. Growth in informal and illegal mining has also fuelled social tensions in some jurisdictions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At an operational level, we continue to face ASM demands at Obuasi for access to land for informal mining. Ongoing engagement with community leadership and public security agencies has advanced our plans to embed a multi-stakeholder response to ASM and illegal mining activities at our sites in Ghana, Guinea and Tanzania. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The continued implementation of mine and community security partnerships at our operations remain a priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Greater interest in responsible sourcing continues to be driven by investors and consumers wanting a guarantee that the products they buy have been ethically sourced. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Underscoring market compliance and due diligence processes to ensure ASM minerals continue to comply with standards that allow sourcing in global supply chains, organisations like the World Bank and London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) have been advocating for initiatives to support the integration of legitimate ASM into the gold supply chain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The World Bank noted that just over 50% of all donor investments into the ASM sector in the last 20 years have gone to supporting mine to market programmes with a variety of traceability and certification systems tracking flows of ASM material to the end user. However, not all of these programmes include environmental and social metrics. This is important in ensuring that all legitimate ASMs that supply the global gold supply chain conform with widely accepted ethical codes related to human rights, child labour, environmental standards and safety procedures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The LBMA launched an initiative encouraging its 66 accredited gold refiners to increase direct sourcing of ASM material from producer nations. By engaging, rather than avoiding the ASM sector, the industry can benefit ASM through legal recognition, which can in turn strengthen local economies and improve security and stability in mining areas.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n In 2025, we intend to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Growth in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is driven by continued strong demand for a variety of metals and minerals globally. ASM is estimated to have contributed to as much as 20% of global gold supply in 2024(1). Across many parts of the world, ASM activity is fuelled by economic and social drivers, and more recently, the impact of climate change on farming and other nature-based livelihoods. (1) World Bank – Achieving Sustainable and Inclusive Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[29],"class_list":["post-548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-our-commitments","tag-empowering-communities"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMaterial issues<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Related SDGs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Disclosure against standards<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Our commitment<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
What we measure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/th> Year 2024<\/th> Year 2023<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> Number of operations\/sites adjacent to ASM:<\/td> 8<\/strong><\/td> 8<\/td><\/tr> Number of countries across footprint with formalised ASM:<\/td> 2<\/strong><\/td> 2<\/td><\/tr> Number of ASM engagements:
All sites operating adjacent to ASM have engagement programmes on ASM. Our engagements with ASM stakeholders remain on-going and occur on a regular basis through our security and community disciplines. The issues discussed include illegal mining in operational areas, ASM formalisation, sensitisation on safety and environmental impacts.<\/em><\/td>8<\/strong><\/td> 8<\/td><\/tr> Number of co-operation agreements in place with ASM:
Prevailing legislation does not provide for ASM within our concessions in Ghana, Tanzania and Guinea. However, we have supported ASM with emergency rescues, training and awareness and environmental education such as the zero mercury campaign in Tanzania. In addition we have engaged with the governments of Tanzania, Ghana and Guinea and other external stakeholders to partner in formalisation initiatives led by the governments.<\/em><\/td>0<\/strong><\/td> 0<\/td><\/tr> Number of livelihood projects:
AngloGold Ashanti implements inclusive growth and local economic activity-promoting Socio-economic Development Plan initiatives across the Group. These are aimed at tackling some of the issues that lead to illegal mining and promote formalisation of the sector.<\/em><\/td>8<\/strong><\/td> 8<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Approach<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nPerformance in 2024<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Traceability<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Looking ahead<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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