In mining communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pact and partners show that a child labor-free future is possible

By the time he was 7, Alain Koji Mutunda was already accompanying his mother to the mine site where she worked in Kolwezi, in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo. At first he collected cobalt ore. Soon he was working underground in tunnels barely wider than his body, carrying loads of minerals heavier than his own weight, crushing blocks of stones, and spending entire days in the water sifting sand for precious material. His income went to his parents to help support the family. 

Alain’s story is far from uncommon. Globally, an estimated 138 million children – 8% of the child population – are engaged in child labor. Of them, about 1 million children work in mining, which is categorized by the International Labor Organization as a Worst Form of Child Labor. 

In DRC, the world’s largest producer of cobalt, thousands of children work in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM), extracting diamonds, copper, cobalt, gold, tin, tantalum, and tungsten. Rather than attending school, they spend their days digging into the earth, carrying rocks, and washing stones – driven largely by poverty. 

It’s against this backdrop that Pact began working to end child labor in DRC mining communities in 2015. Over the past decade, with funding and critical cooperation from a range of partners, we have made marked progress. Though child labor in mining persists in the many communities that have yet to be reached, our programming is a testament that with a dedicated, integrated approach, a child labor-free future is possible. 

“Children are our future,” said Amayèle Dia, who oversees Pact’s Children out of Mining work in DRC. “It is our duty to ensure that they grow up in an environment where their rights are protected, and where they will be given the tools and skills to build better lives for themselves, their families, and their communities.” 

Pact’s efforts have focused on small-scale cobalt, tin, tungsten, and tantalum mining sites in three DRC provinces: Tanganyika, Haut Katanga, and Lualaba, where ASM is vital livelihood. We use a systemic, holistic approach that is tailored to communities’ needs and that addresses factors that drive child labor, such as financial constraints, limited access to education, and a lack of knowledge of children’s rights and the risks that mining means for them. Pact works in partnership with communities, governments, the private sector, and miners themselves to address root causes. Along the way, we build the capacity of local child-focused institutions, including schools, health and social service agencies, and child protection organizations.

With information campaigns, communities have changed social norms and perceptions regarding child labor in mining, as parents and caregivers have come to understand its vast harms – physical injury, mental stress, disease, disenfranchisement, exposure to violence.

Also critical has been empowering economically vulnerable families through Pact’s WORTH financial literacy and group-based savings and loans program; when families have the income they need without relying on child labor, they are more able to make the choice to send their children to school. And we have helped equip older youth with employable skills for healthy futures through the organization of vocational trainings in alternative trades to mining. 

In the communities where Pact has introduced this model, we have reached more than 460,000 people through awareness raising, led by community members themselves. 

“There has been a change in the mentality of parents and children living in areas where artisanal mining is carried out,” said a member of a Pact-supported child protection network. “I have noticed that parents have a better understanding of their responsibilities toward their children and are making efforts to put into practice the advice they have received on parenting techniques.” 

Communities have achieved significant reductions in the number of WORTH members sending their children to work in the mines – a 90% reduction among seven groups surveyed. 

“We make regular savings, and now when our children fall sick, we can pay for medical care,” one WORTH member said. “We manage to pay for our children’s education.”

For child miners who have taken part in apprenticeship opportunities, more than 90% have not returned to mining one year after graduation, often to work in their trade and sometimes to return to school.

“Vocational training was the flagship activity that allowed the children to leave the mines for good,” one of our community partners said. 

Alain, in Kolwezi, is among those children. After community volunteers talked with his parents several times, they agreed to remove Alain and their other children from the mines. Alain took part in an apprenticeship in motorcycle mechanics, while his four brothers returned to school.

Alain took his apprenticeship to heart and quickly distinguished himself. Today, he earns stable income at a safe job and uses some of his earnings to contribute to his brothers’ school fees.  

"A new chapter has begun for me,” he said. “I am now saving to build a large workshop that will be a resource in my community. My parents are of great support. They believe in me and in my abilities.”

Critical to Pact’s approach have been our many partners, and the coordination of efforts among them. Communities have engaged deeply at every step, and upstream private sector actors, such as the Responsible Business Alliance Foundation, Trafigura Foundation, and Microsoft, have provided vital funding and support, along with other donors. 

“Private sector actors are essential stakeholders to the issue of child labor and have a vested interest in tackling child labor in their supply chains,” Dia said.

Dia noted that much more work is needed, as many communities and children remain unreached. Maintaining momentum among the private sector is important, she said. 

Yet she has seen what is possible when partners come together: Local leaders who have decided to formally ban child labor in mines. WORTH group members choosing to give some of their savings to local anti-child labor efforts. Former child miners raising awareness among their peers, or teaching their trade to friends so they, too, can leave mining behind. Communities leading their own solutions to end child labor.

“This is the legacy we can create for children in mining communities,” Dia said. “This future is attainable for all children.”