The Democratic Republic of Congo will begin a massive public-health information campaign for hundreds of thousands of hand-miners as part of a plan to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its key cobalt and copper industry.
The proposals are contained in a report drafted by the Mines Ministry that warns of a “catastrophic” situation if the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak lead to major mine closures.
Congo, the world’s biggest producer of cobalt and Africa’s largest copper miner, has no known coronavirus cases in its copperbelt region in the southeast of the country. Most mines, including ones run by Glencore and China Molybdenum, continue to operate amid staffing restrictions.