Report on Human Rights and Sustainable Development in Clean Energy Mineral Supply Chains

Executive Summary

The global transition towards clean energy, a key component of Sustainable Development Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), has created a surge in demand for essential minerals such as lithium, cobalt, and copper. This report finds that the extraction of these minerals in Central and Sub-Saharan Africa is frequently associated with severe human rights abuses, including widespread child labor. These practices directly contravene several Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 1 (No Poverty), and SDG 5 (Gender Equality). The report highlights that corporate and geopolitical responses are often inadequate, failing to address the root causes of exploitation. It concludes by emphasizing the critical need for solutions that are community-led, gender-inclusive, and prioritize investment in local development to ensure the clean energy transition aligns with the broader 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Contradiction Between Clean Energy Goals and On-the-Ground Realities

Surging Mineral Demand Undermining Sustainable Development

The pursuit of SDG 7 has led to skyrocketing demand for minerals critical to renewable energy technologies. In 2023, demand for lithium rose by 30%, while demand for nickel, cobalt, and graphite grew by over 8%. However, the supply chains meeting this demand are often unjust, creating a paradox where the effort to achieve one global goal actively undermines others.

Violations of Core Sustainable Development Goals

The current state of the extractive industry in key regions represents a significant failure to uphold fundamental SDGs. The most critical violations include:

• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth: The prevalence of child labor is a direct violation of Target 8.7, which calls for the immediate eradication of forced labor and child labor. An estimated 1 million children work in mining globally.
  • In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), 40,000 children work in cobalt mines.
  • In Madagascar, 10,000 children are engaged in mica mining.
  • Child labor is also documented in lithium mines in Nigeria and copper mines in Zambia.
• SDG 4: Quality Education: Children forced into labor are denied their right to education, perpetuating cycles of poverty and limiting their future potential.
• SDG 1: No Poverty: Child labor is a symptom of extreme poverty, where families lack viable economic alternatives to sending their children to work in dangerous conditions.
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities: The system exploits vulnerable communities for global benefit, deepening inequalities between mineral-rich developing nations and consuming countries.

Geopolitical and Corporate Responses

Geopolitical Shifts and Investment Risks

Geopolitical efforts by the U.S., E.U., and Canada to reduce dependency on China’s mineral processing have prompted new investments in African mining. While this aligns with the principle of SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals), these investments risk exacerbating human rights abuses if not coupled with stringent regulations and community benefit agreements. In Nigeria, for example, new Chinese-backed lithium plants are being commissioned, yet the extraction remains largely unregulated.

Inadequate Corporate Disengagement

In response to public backlash against human rights abuses, corporations often sever ties with non-compliant suppliers. This approach fails to address the systemic issues driving child labor and can devastate local economies that depend on mining. A sustainable approach requires engagement and investment to improve conditions, not abandonment, thereby supporting SDG 8 and SDG 1.

Community-Led Solutions for an Ethical and Sustainable Supply Chain

The Central Role of Gender Equality in Eradicating Child Labor

Achieving SDG 5 (Gender Equality) is fundamental to resolving the child labor crisis. Women are often primary caregivers and possess unique insights into the community dynamics and economic pressures that lead to child labor. Empowering women economically and including them in decision-making processes is a proven strategy for improving outcomes for children and communities.

Models for Sustainable Community Development

Locally-led initiatives demonstrate effective, sustainable pathways to reform the mining sector. Key examples include:

1. Community-Based Intervention in Nigeria: The Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation utilizes a network of women to identify and address child labor. Their strategies directly support multiple SDGs:
   • They advocate for policies like school feeding programs, which support SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) by removing the economic pressure on families to send children to work for a daily meal.
   • They engage directly with families and community leaders to find alternatives, such as placing children with relatives who can afford to send them to school.
2. Women’s Economic Empowerment in the DRC: Activist Annie Sinaduku Mwange’s network helps women acquire and manage their own mines. These “mères” bosses (mother bosses) are transforming the sector by:
   • Promoting SDG 5 by challenging gender norms and creating economic power for women.
   • Ensuring children are sent to school instead of mines, directly advancing SDG 4.
   • Establishing safer and more respectful working conditions, contributing to SDG 8.
3. Advancing Corporate Accountability through Justice: Corporate watchdog RAID and legal aid group CAJJ are supporting Congolese workers in suing mining companies for fair wages and decent conditions. This strategic litigation advances SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) and SDG 8 by holding corporations accountable and fighting forced labor.

Conclusion and Recommendations

A Framework for Aligning the Energy Transition with the 2030 Agenda

To ensure the global pursuit of clean energy does not compromise human rights and sustainable development, all stakeholders must adopt a holistic approach. The following actions are recommended:

• Integrate human rights and the principles of SDG 8 (Decent Work) as non-negotiable priorities within all clean energy initiatives and investments.
• Adopt a bottom-up approach by actively listening to and empowering local communities, particularly women, in line with SDG 5, to design and implement solutions.
• Shift from corporate disengagement to responsible investment in communities to address the root causes of child labor, including poverty (SDG 1) and lack of educational access (SDG 4).
• Strengthen legal and regulatory frameworks to enforce corporate accountability for human rights abuses, thereby advancing SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 16.

An ethical, prosperous, and sustainable future is only achievable when the global goals are pursued in unison. The clean energy transition must be a catalyst for uplifting communities and protecting children, ensuring that progress towards SDG 7 reinforces, rather than undermines, the entire sustainable development framework.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 1: No Poverty – The article connects child labor directly to poverty, stating, “Children end up in mines when desperate families lack viable alternatives.” It also mentions school feeding programs as a solution to prevent families from sending children to mines for a meal.
• SDG 4: Quality Education – The article opens by describing “hands that should hold pencils and schoolbooks” and later mentions that economically empowered women are “more likely to send their children to school instead of into the mines.” This highlights the conflict between child labor and the right to education.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality – The article emphasizes the need to listen to women workers and activists, highlighting their unique insights as caregivers. It also discusses the empowerment of women miners (“mères bosses”) as a solution to child labor and notes that women are often “relegated to the lowest-paid jobs and are often sexually harassed.”
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy – The core issue is driven by the demand for minerals essential for clean energy technologies like “electric vehicle batteries, solar cells, and wind turbines.” The article discusses the negative social consequences of the global transition to clean energy.
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth – This is a central theme, focusing on the exploitation of children in mining. The article explicitly discusses child labor, forced labor, the need for “fair labor practices,” “decent pay,” and safe working conditions for all workers, not just children.
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production – The article critiques the “unjust supply chain” for minerals used in clean energy, highlighting how consumer demand and corporate practices contribute to human rights abuses. It calls for “ethical, mutually prosperous supply chains.”
• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions – The article points to a lack of regulation (“lightly regulated and unlicensed mines are the norm”) and mentions legal actions, such as workers “challenging cobalt mining companies in Congolese courts” and “strategic litigation to fight forced labor,” which relate to ensuring access to justice.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. SDG 1: No Poverty

   • Target 1.2: By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions. The article identifies poverty as a root cause of child labor.
   • Target 1.3: Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable. The mention of “school feeding programs” is an example of such a system.

2. SDG 4: Quality Education

   • Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education. The article’s focus on getting children out of mines and into school directly supports this target.

3. SDG 5: Gender Equality

   • Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life. The article advocates for listening to women activists and highlights the success of “mères bosses” (mother bosses) who manage their own mines.
   • Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation. The article mentions that women workers are “often sexually harassed.”

4. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Target 8.7: Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms. This is the primary focus of the article, which details child labor in mines across several African countries.
   • Target 8.8: Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers. The article discusses “abusive conditions” in mines and the need for “decent pay and conditions.”

5. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

   • Target 12.6: Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle. The article criticizes companies that draw from an “unjust supply chain” and mentions corporate watchdog organizations pressing for accountability.

6. SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

   • Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children. The article’s entire theme is about the exploitation of children in mines.
   • Target 16.3: Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all. The mention of workers challenging mining companies in court and strategic litigation efforts directly relates to this target.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. For Target 8.7 (End child labor):

   • Indicator 8.7.1: Proportion and number of children aged 5‑17 years engaged in child labour, by sex and age group. The article provides specific numbers that serve as direct indicators:
     • “An estimated 40,000 children work in cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)”
     • “an estimated 10,000 children mine for mica” in Madagascar
     • “Globally, more than one million children work in mines and quarries”

2. For Target 4.1 (Ensure quality education):

   • Implied Indicator: The number or proportion of children enrolled in school in mining communities. The article implies this metric when it discusses efforts to “put the child in school instead” of having them work in a mine.

3. For Target 5.5 (Women’s leadership):

   • Implied Indicator: The number and proportion of women in management and ownership positions in the mining sector. The article points to this with the example of the “mères bosses” network, which helps women “purchase and manage their own mines.”

4. For Target 8.8 (Protect labor rights):

   • Implied Indicator: The average wage level for mine workers. The article implies this can be measured by tracking the success of efforts to press for “fair wages.”

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: time.com