ECAS 2013

Stemming from the assumed link between the Congolese mining sector and the country's protracted crisis, international public and private initiatives have been promulgated, aiming for the formalization and de-militarization of the mining sector. Several certification and traceability schemes have been designed and already partly implemented seeking to prevent 'conflict minerals' from reaching the international market. Viewing policy interventions as a social process of interaction rather than a unilateral action of decision-makers deciding the course of action of implementers and its recipients, this paper assumes that the implementation practices related to the international reform policies will not necessarily be in perfect harmony with its stated policies objectives (Scott 1998, Mosse 2004, Colebatch 1998). Consequently, the problem of analysis becomes to understand the process through which these certification and traceability schemes are negotiated and translated into national Congolese policy as well as into every-day governance practices at the provincial level. Based on two months of fieldwork in both Kinshasa and Lubumbashi, this paper takes the role of national state officials and provincial civil servants working for state mining services, as well as their practices and discursive actions to be the point of departure in the analysis of the policy process. Drawing on an interpretative /political ethnographic approach (Long 2001, Yanow 2011, Olivier de Sardan 2008) the paper examines the motivations, assumptions and theories of change underlying these international initiatives and their competition or complementation with national and provincial 'official norms' (after the concept of Olivier de Sardan).

For years mineral resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo have stood out as an example of the famous 'curse', fuelling a bloody conflict in the Eastern provinces and thwarting sustainable development. Over the last decade both the Congolese government and a whole range of external actors - international organizations, governments and NGOs - have tirelessly launched proposals and made attempts to regulate the mining sector and bring it further under government's control, with a view to put an end to 'conflict minerals' and make these resources contribute to state revenues through formalization. On the ground, however, most of these initiatives have been fruitless. On the basis of case-studies from the gold sector in the province of South-Kivu, this contribution demonstrates why it has been so difficult to control this sector. We argue that external attempts at regulation fail to take into account the practical norms in the local arena. We discuss practical norms at two levels. First, there are the practical norms regulating transactions and interactions in artisanal gold exploitation and unofficial trade, which are historically shaped and dynamically interpreted by the actors. Second, there are the practical norms of local power complexes, where authorities compete to control the rents provided by gold mining and trade. An empirical study of the gold sector in South-Kivu should help to uncover these practical norms.

The "struggle for Africa's resources", conflicts about "scarce resources" and the "paradox of plenty" - a lot has been written about the impact of resource exploitation in Africa and elsewhere. The academic discussion on resource-related conflicts has invested comparatively little effort into determining what a resource is and what makes it valuable for society. On the other hand, geographical research has a long tradition of reflecting upon the relationship between humanity and nature. This paper will therefore bring in geographical contributions contending that such an effort helps to elucidate how transnational governance initiatives aimed at the resource sector play out on the local level.

First, the paper will critically examine major strands of research on resource-related conflicts (Collier and Hoeffler, Snyder, Le Billon) with regard to their concept of natural resources. Subsequently, it will build on research perspectives highlighting the socio-material nature of resources and "social practices" (Andreas Reckwitz, 2003) to come to an understanding of resources, which is able to account for the different values that different societal actors - local, national and international - attribute to them. From a conflict research perspective, one can then highlight the contentious processes of enacting resources and negotiating access to these.

The case of artisanal gold mining in DRC's South Kivu, and efforts to formalize and certify artisanal production will serve to highlight the different strategies of local, national and international societal actors relating to this mineral resource. The authors will draw on a desk study and field research undertaken in 2011 and 2012.

The recent confirmation of commercial deposits of oil in the Albertine Grabben in Western Uganda has created a wave of anxiety and expectation in Uganda and Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom in particular. Historically one of the most powerful kingdoms in the Great Lakes Region, Bunyoro resisted colonial rule, was crushed and marginalized during and after colonialism. Bunyoro kingdom and its subjects suffered extreme humiliation and subjugation, resulting into crisis and eventual decline, demonstrating the price paid for resisting foreign imposition. For instance, during British colonial rule surveys of the oil deposits were undertaken and completed in 1928 and colonial intentions to exploit the oil were announced but never implemented- in some ways re-enforcing the narrative of colonial marginalization. Because oil like other mineral resources represents capital, geograpy and territory it creates fertile ground on which identities (political, economic and social), can be constructed and sustained. This paper intends to engage with the emerging spaces of indigeneity associated with the confirmation of oil finds in Bunyoro. Using data obtained from recent field studies, I present how oil has become a cornerstone of mobilization in present day Bunyoro and how this has led to new forms and spaces of local power and how mining capital engages with these spaces.

This paper examined the theory of the resource curse in relation to Botswana and Nigeria: two countries in Africa blessed with natural resources but with very different developmental experiences. It evaluated policies and regulations used in the management of natural resources from both countries in an attempt to find out how Botswana has managed to be identified as a country enjoying unmatched growth rates in Africa in recent decades while Nigeria is barely taking advantage of the resources available to it. This analysis will serve as a reference point to the Ghanaian government on steps to take to avoid the resource curse in its enthusiasm to benefit from the recent oil find in Ghana's Jubilee fields. Since transparency plays a key role in the growth and development of a country especially when it comes to resource revenue, this paper focused on the anti-corruption measures used in both countries to ensure the fair and equitable distribution of oil rents. The paper finds that democracy, media freedom and good institutions play important roles in the management of resource revenue. Further, even though it is important to learn from other successful countries, policies used to combat corruption must be modified to suit the economic, political, social and legal environment of the particular country.